GPS World

Tag: Mayflower

  • New autonomous Mayflower launches from Plymouth to gather ocean data

    New autonomous Mayflower launches from Plymouth to gather ocean data

    Photo: Tom Barnes for IBM
    Photo: Tom Barnes for IBM

    An autonomous ship launched Sept. 16 on a mission to traverse oceans and gather vital environmental data, guided by GNSS and inertial measurement units (IMUs).

    Ocean research non-profit ProMare joined with IBM on the Mayflower Autonomous Ship (MAS) — an artificial intelligence (AI) and solar-powered marine research vessel. Following two years of design, construction and training of its AI models, the fully-autonomous trimaran was launched from Plymouth, England.

    The ship is guided by both GNSS and IMU technology. It uses two Hexagon | Veripos LD8 receivers, each with two V560 marine antennas. The onboard IMUs include an iXBlue Octans and two Silicon Sensing AMU30s.

    Designed to provide a safe, flexible and cost-effective way of gathering data about the ocean, the new-generation Mayflower promises to transform oceanography by working in tandem with scientists and other autonomous vessels to help understand critical issues such as global warming, micro-plastic pollution and marine mammal conservation.

    ProMare is coordinating the scientific studie,s working with IBM Research and leading scientific organizations.

    MAS features an AI captain built by ProMare and IBM developers that gives MAS the ability to sense, think and make decisions at sea with no human captain or onboard crew. The new class of marine AI is underpinned by IBM’s latest advanced edge computing systems, automation software, computer vision technology and Red Hat Open Source software.

    “Able to scan the horizon for possible hazards, make informed decisions and change its course based on a fusion of live data, the Mayflower Autonomous Ship has more in common with a modern bank than its 17th century namesake,” said Andy Stanford-Clark, Chief Technology Officer, IBM UK & Ireland. “With its ability to keep running in the face of the most challenging conditions, this small ship is a microcosm for every aspiring 21st century business.”

    Photo:
    Artie — short for Artemis and artificial Intelligence — is a stowaway hitching a ride on the Mayflower who answers questions about the ship, the ocean or himself on mas400.com. (Photo: IBM)

    Interactive web portal follows voyage

    To enable followers around the world to stay updated with MAS as it undertakes its various missions, IBM and ProMare have also launched an interactive web portal. Built by IBM iX (the business design arm of IBM Services), the MAS400 portal is designed to provide real-time updates about the ship’s location, environmental conditions and data from its various research projects.

    Live weather data is streamed from IBM’s The Weather Company, as MAS receives forecast data and insight from the new IBM Weather Operations Center.

    ‘Octopus’ aboard answers questions

    The portal even features a seven-armed, stowaway octopus chatbot called Artie, who claims to be hitching a ride on the ship. (With seven arms, he’s technically a septopus.) Powered by IBM Watson Assistant technology and created in partnership with European startup Chatbotbay, Artie has been trained to provide information about MAS and its adventures in a lively, and accessible format.

    “MAS400.com is one of the most advanced ocean mission web portals ever built,” says Fredrik Soreide, Scientific Director of the Mayflower Autonomous Ship project and Board Member of ProMare. “Protecting the ocean depends on our ability to engage the public in important matters affecting its health. This MAS400 portal is designed to do exactly that and tell people where the ship is, what speed it’s travelling at, what conditions it’s operating in and what science we are conducting. Users can even help Artie the Octopus fish out surgical masks, cigarette butts and other increasingly common forms of ocean litter from a virtual ocean of facts and data.”

    MAS will spend the next six months in sea trials and undertake various research missions and voyages before attempting to cross the Atlantic in Spring 2021. MAS’s transatlantic voyage will be based on a similar route and pioneering spirit to the 1620 Mayflower which made the same crossing 400 years ago.

  • Mayflower delivers anti-jam antenna systems to U.S. Air Force

    Mayflower Communications Company has delivered its Multi-Platform Anti-Jam GPS Navigation Antenna–Federated (MAGNA-F) to the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) in August 2017.

    Mayflower’s MAGNA-F anti-jam antenna system.

    Mayflowers’ GPS anti-jam system (MAGNA) provides protection for multiple military GPS receiver types (C/A and SAASM).  The AFSOC platform has been proven in an operational environment.

    MAGNA-F can provide protected GPS signals to different receivers simultaneously. It protects critical mission systems on the platform and provides unwavering position, navigation and timing (PNT).

    The MAGNA-F system provides the fixed-wing platform with unsurpassed high-performance anti-jam capability.

    “The MAGNA-F is easy to install as a drop in FRPA replacement, provides high-performance GPS anti-jam, and is very reliable,” said Joe Thomas, director of government programs for Mayflower.

    The integration and testing of the MAGNA-F began in late January and February of 2017 and was led by the U.S. AFSOC Program Team at U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM).

    The flight testing proved the Mayflower MAGNA-F provides the highest level of PNT assurance for size, weight and performance (SWaP) constrained fixed-wing and UAS platforms.

    The MAGNA-F is built on an open systems architecture and can be used with multiple military or civilian GPS receivers.

    The MAGNA-F enables growth capabilities across a variety SWaP constrained platforms including rotary wing, fixed wing, and small to large unmanned aerial systems (UAS). The MAGNA AJ systems are also adaptable for U.S. Army ground vehicle AJAS requirements.

    Over the past five years, Mayflower has delivered anti-jam systems across multiple aircraft (fixed wing, UAS) and U.S. Navy strategic-level submarine platforms.

    The Mayflower family of anti-jam systems have a wealth of military live tests (flight and ground) and “real-world” operational experience. The Mayflower SAS (NavGuard 500), SAGE (NavGuard 501) and MAGNA-F (NavGuard 502) assures a Technology Readiness Level (TRL 8/9) product. Each of these systems are software upgradable with capabilities such as direction of arrival, jammer characterization, and operational with U.S. Army pseudolites.

  • Mayflower selected for submarine antenna anti-jam upgrade

    Mayflower selected for submarine antenna anti-jam upgrade

    An antenna upgrade for U.S. Navy submarines is being provided to improve GPS anti-jamming capabilities.

    Mayflower Communications Company, subcontractor to Lockheed Martin Sippican, is applying its Submarine Anti-Jam GPS Enhancement (SAGE) capability to the U.S. Navy Multifunction Mast Antenna System (OE-538B) upgrade to improve submarine communications and meet Navigation Warfare (NAVWAR) requirements.

    The SAGE (NavGuard 501) GPS anti-jam unit.
    The SAGE (NavGuard 501) GPS anti-jam unit.

    The Mayflower SAGE — a variant of Small Antenna System (SAS) — was developed specifically for inclusion on Submarine Platforms to support U.S. Navy requirements for GPS anti-jam.

    The SAGE’s small size and feature set make it capable for ease of integration by Lockheed Martin Sippican into the OE-538B antenna mast.

    The SAGE is a high performance and low size, weight and power (SWaP) cost-effective antenna system that will enable the U.S. Navy submarine fleet to operate in GPS contested or denied (NAVWAR) environments.

    The SAGE (NavGuard 501) can supply clean GPS Signals to multiple GPS receivers from a single antenna and is compatible with C/A, SAASM P(Y), and M-code receivers. The SAGE fits he small SWaP requirements of the OE-538B antenna mast.

    The SAGE is Mayflower’s latest federated, affordable anti-jam solution that leverages proven small antenna system (SAS) technology and provides Iridium capability in an integrated antenna. The SAS solution has been extensively tested by the federal government on multiple platforms.

    The SAGE is the highest performance and smallest GPS anti-jam federated solution with Iridium capability in the market. The SAGE AJ solution offers an affordable SWaP-C alternative over larger and more expensive existing anti-jam systems.

    The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR HQ) awarded the sole source contract for the development of an OE-538B antenna upgrade and procurement to Lockheed Martin Sippican/Granite State Manufacturing Submarine Antenna Joint Venture. The contract is in support of the Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (PEO C4I), Undersea Integration Program Office (PMW/A 770).

    Mayflower was selected by the U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin Sippican to design, develop, and integrate the Submarine Anti-Jam GPS Enhancement (SAGE) (NavGuard 501) product.

    Joseph Thomas, Mayflower’s Director of Government Programs, said, “The SAGE product has given Mayflower the opportunity to support a U.S. Navy National Strategic Level Platform and to expand into the next generation of small SWaP NAVWAR GPS Anti-Jam systems. The SAGE ensures we can continue to offer the warfighters the very latest and most efficient technology to support operations in an A2AD Environment”.

    Mayflower is working closely with Lockheed Martin Sippican to complete integration and environmental qualification of the SAGE to support the OE-538B program requirements.

  • Mayflower awarded defense MGUE contract for GPS receiver modernization

    Mayflower awarded defense MGUE contract for GPS receiver modernization

    Mayflower Communications Company Inc. will develop a small security-certifiable GPS module for the United States Air Force’s Modernized GPS User Equipment (MGUE) Program.

    The Mayflower NavAssure 125a GPS receiver.
    The Mayflower NavAssure 125a GPS receiver.

    Mayflower was awarded a Phase III SGUE (Small GPS User Equipment) contract with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory sponsored by the Space and Missile Systems Center/GPS Directorate (SMC/GPSD).

    Under the contract, the company will develop a small SWaP (Size, Weight, and Power) security certifiable Common GPS Module (CGM).

    Mayflowers’ small SWaP GPS receiver technology will allow the Department of Defense (DoD) and its agencies to benefit from increased competition, enhanced capability and reduction in overall program costs to DoD program managers and prime contractors in upgrading their navigation systems to the modernized M-code receiver.

    Mayflower’s SGUE program is aimed at the development of advanced GPS receiver technology to support future military GPS requirements.  The goal of the program is to develop a NAVWAR (Navigation Warfare) compatible CGM form factor that will support SWaP-constrained military users.

    The SGUE CGM development effort will expand Mayflower’s military GPS receiver product line to include modernized NavAssure-M product offerings so that current customers will have a form-fit-function upgrade path from SAASM to MGUE.

    “Mayflower is a leader in small SWaP and miniaturized military GPS receiver and anti-jam products,” said Triveni Upadhyay, Mayflower founder and CEO. “I am confident in the quality and innovation expertise of our GPS engineering team to successfully develop the SGUE CGM. The development of small SWaP MGUE form factors, enabled by SGUE CGM, will have a significant impact in the M-Code market, providing secure modernized GPS signals to the warfighters and lowering total ownership costs on many military programs.”

    “The Air Force is very pleased to see innovative GPS technology developed under its SBIR Program to find commercialization opportunity in the MGUE market. Mayflower has performed well and we are confident of the SGUE program success,” said Dana Howell, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) program manager.

    “The AFRL/GPSD objective in the SGUE Program is to advance MGUE technology and make it affordable to the warfighter,” said Eddy Emile, chief of the Advanced Technology and International Branch, GPS Directorate. ”

    The SGUE Program fits the need and will lower the cost to the user by increased competition enabled by the SGUE Program.”

    According to Mayflower, the NavAssure-M MGUE receiver form factors, focused toward small SWaP GPS receiver applications, will be backward compatible to SAASM, therefore, lowering the platform integration cost and total life-cycle cost.