Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), such as Galileo and GPS, provide location information for a wide range of applications. However, in environments with poor GNSS coverage such as dense urban areas, underground, inside buildings, or when the GNSS signal has been jammed, GNSS-based location may be unavailable or have large errors. Whilst techniques exist to improve the integrity of GNSS-derived position and to compensate for periods of signal loss for vehicles and aircraft, there are few such solutions for human locomotion. The DYANS project used a combination of low-cost Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) components (accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers) and knowledge of the biomechanics of legged locomotion to develop a navigation system to deliver improved accuracy and continuity of location information when using human navigation devices in poor GNSS conditions.
Research and development were undertaken to develop a prototype sensor system for continuous, reliable and accurate 3D location, navigation and tracking, capable of operating under conditions where GNSS provides poor accuracy or misleading data, and/or in situations where the continuous power drain of a GNSS receiver would be unacceptable.
The development programme covered hardware, software, communications technologies and data processing algorithms. Hardware was selected based on a range of performance characteristics to achieve optimal location accuracy with minimal power consumption. However, due to the global supply shortages of electronic components following the Covid pandemic, multiple re-designs were required to overcome supply issues. New hardware came on the market during the project which proved to be highly advantageous to the final solution in terms of accuracy and performance. The prototype development reached the stage of TRL4 and is currently being tested under highly dynamic and challenging conditions. Development will continue to TRL6.
We undertook extensive discussions with a potential commercial partner about incorporation of the design into commercial products. This discussion and development required are ongoing. The software integration and interface with our system requires further work. Discussions with other potential commercial users have been initiated.
