Honeywell has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with NewSpace Research and Technologies, an emerging India-based developer of unmanned platforms, to collaborate on navigation systems for unmanned aerial systems.
The two companies will jointly bring enhanced operational capabilities to unmanned platforms for military use, leveraging Honeywell’s advanced navigation technologies.
Rajesh Rege, President, Honeywell India, said, “We are excited to bring our global capabilities in navigation systems for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to advance research in the field in India. This will be a significant step towards helping develop India’s defense capabilities and contributing to the vision of achieving Atmanirbhar Bharat in defense.”
Honeywell will provide its Resilient Navigation System, which enables UAVs to autonomously navigate in Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) denied environments.
The Resilient Navigation System consists of Honeywell’s Compact Inertial Navigation System (HCINS), a radar-based Velocity Aiding System (HRVS) and anti-jamming system (GPSdome) – all working in tandem to provide multiple layers of protection that allow commercial and military operators to perform autonomous Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations in GNSS challenged or denied environments.
The teams will also collaborate on the engineering and testing of UAV navigation solutions in India.
Speaking on the announcement, Matt Picchetti, vice president and general manager, Navigation and Sensors, Honeywell Aerospace, said, “GNSS outage and jamming are major challenges for UAV operations, especially military users. These disruptions can result in catastrophic consequences for small and medium UAVs and jeopardize critical missions. Honeywell’s Resilient Navigation System significantly reduces this risk and enables UAVs to carry out missions in GNSS challenged scenarios.”
“NewSpace Research and Technologies Private Limited is integrating some of the best resilient navigation technologies for robust operations in adverse and denied environments like the tactical battlefield area,” said Sameer Joshi, CEO, NewSpace Research and Technologies.
Based in Bengaluru, NewSpace Research and Technologies designs and develops persistent drones for earth observation and communications and specializes in swarm drones.