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It is of no surprise that advances in satellite navigation technologies (particularly the US GPS system) have proved to be invaluable for giving us time and position continuously, to great accuracy and anywhere in the world.  Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) services and the availability of compact GNSS receiver systems have led to the widespread use of the technology and, in many cases, a near total dependency on GNSS – not just in the military arena, but also in our everyday lives. 

The consequence of such dependency and ubiquity is a growing threat from adversaries who have identified advantage in denying or misleading PNT capabilities.  Modern GNSS systems rely on very low power signals transmitted over great distances.   This exposes the technology to a myriad of environmental challenges and ever more sophisticated threats including both unintentional, such as interference, as well as intentional threats such as jamming and spoofing.

That’s why the development of highly resilient PNT technologies is of such significance. This is particularly true for guided munitions and complex weapons and missile systems that rely on PNT to deliver precision effects at the time and place of a commanders choosing while minimising collateral damage and any risks to allied war fighters and the civilian population.  Unintended consequences resulting from inaccuracy, component failure or malicious and accidental interference can be truly devastating.  These weapon systems - and the components within them - must also work in very demanding environments, such as through gun launch, and are likely to encounter many years of storage before use.  To meet such demands, the assurance of the design and supply chain for the GNSS receiver is, therefore, of critical importance.

QinetiQ’s high performance Q40 GNSS receiver is right at the leading edge of assured PNT capability delivering technical and operational enhancements that reflect the specific demands and priorities of both military end-users as well as the developers of advanced munitions and weapon systems. 

Purpose-designed

Significantly, the Q40 features a tri-band receiver architecture to provide multi-constellation and multi-signal tracking to maintain reliability and performance in highly dynamic environments. The ability to use any combination of the four major GNSS constellations at once (under the control of a policy manager) and multiple frequencies, combined with advanced GNSS processing algorithms, provides a robust and assured navigation solution.  

Special processing supports the very fast Time to First Fix (TTFF) required for guided munitions and complex weapons. Interference mitigation (IM), anti-spoofing and RF cyber protections together with intelligent signal management and assured PNT software also provide protection from spoofing and cyber threats. What’s more, the Q40 receiver can be used with external Controlled Radiation Pattern Antennas (CRPAs) to give extremely high levels of protection against jamming and spoofing and it is ideally suited for use in integrated navigation systems to provide high resilience in very heavily GNSS contended environments.                                                                                  

Due to Q40’s ability to withstand very high levels of vibration, high-g turning and wide temperature ranges, the Q40 is well suited for even the most sophisticated weapon systems, including the next generation hypersonic missiles that are highly manoeuvrable and can undergo accelerations of up to 100g and even higher levels of jerk.  The Q40 is specifically designed to overcome such issues.  It will not only survive the extreme environmental conditions of shell and mortar launch set-backs, but also will ensure acquisition and tracking at the very high accelerations and speeds associated with advanced complex weapons and guided munitions.

The Q40 receiver benefits from advanced and newly developed RF and digital ASICS to deliver high performance even in contested, congested and degraded signal environments.  All of this is delivered from a very small (4.0 x 31.8 x 25.4mm) module with a weight of just 10 grams and very low power consumption.  Q40 is a software defined receiver and can accommodate in-service software updates allowing for incremental upgrades as well as updates in response to new and emerging threats. 

There has been a lot of research into alternative navigation (AltNav) solutions and the development of more sophisticated systems that can identify and override corrupted information or provide an alternative source of information.  However, there are limitations for all options and none provide the same combination of very high accuracy and global 24/7 availability as is the case with GNSS, which remains a key part of resilient PNT solutions.  For system integrators, the Q40 provides support for multi-sensor integration that include mixes of conventional and AltNav sensors and also features a rich set of interface protocols to maximise flexibility. And, significantly, the receiver is ITAR-free and delivered from an assured supply chain.

The development of the Q40 represents a step-change in resilient PNT solutions for highly dynamic applications.  It will enable users to harness assured and resilient GNSS capabilities while also supporting the future integration of complementary technologies in response to constantly evolving threats. 

To find out more about Q40 contact us here.