GPS World

Tag: HRL

  • HRL Laboratories offers small, rugged IMU

    HRL Laboratories offers small, rugged IMU

    HRL Laboratories has introduced a new inertial measurement unit (IMU) that provides near navigation-grade accuracy in a palm-sized package.

    Smaller and lighter than grade-equivalent conventional sensors, HRL’s AXI-R100 delivers range-extending accuracy for GPS-contested navigation. The product is now ready for pre-production orders.

    Using silicon microelectro-mechanical systems (MEMS) technology, HRL’s gyros exceeds the performance of many tactical-grade IMUs in the same or smaller package size, and is manufactured in high volumes at wafer-scale. This near navigation-grade performance is available at a tactical-grade price.

    The new IMU is suitable for use in defense, aerospace and automotive applications, including missile-guidance systems and drone navigation, as well as for commercial automotive applications with higher levels of autonomy. The product is ready for integration as it has been designed and tested against challenging vibration, shock and thermal conditions representative of those applications.

    HRL will present product specifications at the 2026 Joint Navigation Conference, taking place this week in Cincinnati, Ohio, and is exhibiting in booth 129.

      By leveraging high volume design automotive methodologies, HRL designed AXI-R100 navigation sensors to scale for high-volume automotive demand while maintaining performance superiority over traditional tactical-grade sensors. The result is a gyroscope compatible with foundry fabrication processes for high volume applications.

      “Our gyroscopes and inertial sensors support navigation, pointing and stabilization systems for autonomous vehicles, aircraft and guided missile and munition applications,” said Jeff Dickman, director, Precision Sensing, HRL Laboratories. “We leveraged our extensive microelectronics legacy along with innovations in micromechanical and manufacturing processes to pave the way for AXI-R100 to address the urgent needs from our industrial base.”

    • HRL Labs to develop inertial sensor tech for DARPA

      The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded HRL Laboratories LLC $4.3 million to develop vibration- and shock-tolerant inertial sensor technology that enables future system accuracy needs without using GPS.

      Positioning, navigation and timing are key to ensuring the location accuracy critical to the success of modern military missions. Today’s military systems typically rely on GPS to ensure position accuracy. While GPS provides sub-meter accuracy in optimal conditions, the signal is often lost or degraded due to natural interference or malicious jamming.

      “The ATLAS project will deliver a comprehensive approach to breaking performance and cost, size, weight and power barriers in inertial sensor technology that prevent robust, GPS-independent, military positioning, navigation and guidance,” said Logan Sorenson, principal investigator and research staff member in HRL’s Sensors and Materials Laboratory.

      ATLAS will combine intimate locking of a micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) Coriolis Vibratory Gyroscope (CVG) sensor with an atomically stable frequency reference in order to exploit the intrinsic accuracy of the atomic hyperfine transition frequency.

      “The engineering challenge lies in developing a system architecture to transfer the stability from the atomic reference to the CVG sensor without introducing unintended noise,” Sorenson said. “We are very excited to explore this novel approach to addressing long-standing precision navigation need faced by the U.S. military.”

      HRL Laboratories is located in Malibu, California. It is a corporate research-and-development laboratory owned by The Boeing Company and General Motors specializing in research into sensors and materials, information and systems sciences, applied electromagnetics, and microelectronics. HRL provides custom research and development and performs additional R&D contract services for its LLC member companies, the U.S. government, and other commercial companies.