Spirent teams with Northrop Grumman on GNSS/inertial validation

Spirent Federal Systems, a provider of PNT/GNSS test equipment, announced plans to fully validate the inertial interface between Spirent GNSS simulators and both Northrop Grumman legacy and modernized inertial systems under the EGI‐M program.

For years, Spirent Federal has developed inertial interface test tools in collaboration with Northrop Grumman that yield repeatable, accurate results.

Northrop Grumman’s embedded GPS/inertial navigation system (INS)‐modernization, or EGI‐M, program is developing airborne navigation capabilities with a government‐owned open architecture. The fully modernized system integrates new M‐code capable GPS receivers, provides interoperability with civil controlled air space, and implements a new resilient time capability.

“Spirent Federal has long supported testing of the Northrop Grumman family of interfaces,” said Jeff Martin, Vice President of Sales for Spirent Federal, “and our customers have always obtained precise, reliable results. Spirent Federal strives to keep abreast of the newest technology to be ready to meet the needs of industry, and this collaborative effort that includes the EGI‐M program is yet another example. Spirent is an important part of Northrop Grumman’s test solutions and this validation project acknowledges that importance.”

Spirent Federal has been providing tools for testing inertial systems for more than two decades. Available SimINERTIAL interfaces comprise various EGIs and IMUs from manufacturers of inertial sensors, including Northrop Grumman (formerly Litton), Honeywell and Atlantic Inertial Systems, as well as standardized interfaces such as STANAG.

Testing the full operational performance of GPS/inertial systems usually requires expensive and time‐consuming field testing on a moving vehicle. Spirent’s SimINERTIAL system emulates inertial sensor outputs while concurrently simulating GPS RF signals, enabling controlled, repeatable testing of EGIs and reducing the need for field trials.