“It is important to distinguish between a sensor or even an IMU that could perform gyro-compass functions and a complete gyro-compassing and navigating solution,” SBG marketing head Florian Ollier told Electronics Weekly. “In our case, we combine an IMU with the performance capabilities to act as a gyro-compass with new algorithms that leverage the performance of this IMU – due to its mems nature, it requires specific processing compared to traditional fibre-optic gyro-compasses. This is further combined with our inertial navigation algorithms, providing a unique solution for surveying and especially underwater navigation when paired with a Doppler velocity log. To our knowledge, there is currently no product on the market that offers all these components and functions.”
This is a technical demonstrator, with related commercial products scheduled to appear early in 2026.
It measures 52 x 52 x 36mm, weighs under 150g, and consumes 2W.
The few other technical details that have been made public are that it can achieve heading accuracy better than 1° secant latitude without GNSS aiding, improving to better than 0.01° when fused with GNSS data using the company’s algorithms.
Applications are foreseen in remote-operated and autonomous underwater vehicle.
