Module monitors movements in high-interference areas.PARIS Paris, in Greek mythology Paris or Alexander, in Greek mythology, son of Priam and Hecuba and brother of Hector. Because it was prophesied that he would cause the destruction of Troy, Paris was abandoned on Mt. -- Tracking soldiers and first responders in global positioning system-denied environments, such as urban buildings and subterranean tunnels, may now be possible thanks to a new technology that uses a range of sensors that are impervious to magnetic interference. Vectronix, headquartered in Heerbrugg, Switzerland, has developed a core navigation module that can follow the movements of people in areas where electromagnetic disturbances disrupt traditional tracking devices. The module incorporates existing digital compass technology--three accelerometers and three magnetometers--with a gyroscope gyroscope (jī`rəskōp'), symmetrical mass, usually a wheel, mounted so that it can spin about an axis in any direction. When spinning, the gyroscope has special properties. and a barometer to track a person's location. "What you have is the progression of modules," explains Louis Shadle, company spokesman. "The first module is most basic, a digital magnetic compass. When you add to the digital magnetic compass an accelerometer accelerometer Instrument that measures acceleration. Because it is difficult to measure acceleration directly, the device measures the force exerted by restraints placed on a reference mass to hold its position fixed in an accelerating body. , you have the ability to measure inertial movement. That's a dead reckoning dead reckoning: see navigation. compass. Next, when you add a gyroscope, as well as a barometric sensor, that becomes the core navigation module. Each one builds upon previous technologies." The core navigation module can feed the information into a computer or handhold hand·hold n. 1. A grip of or by the hand. 2. Something that one can hold onto for support. Noun 1. handhold - an appendage to hold onto appendage - a part that is joined to something larger device. During a ground warfare exposition here, the company runs a demonstration of the module. Wearing a vest with the system tucked into a compact pack in the small of her back, Celine Vanderstaeten, personal navigation project manager, walks around the floor of the exhibition. As she makes progress around the building, her path appears in a solid red line in real time on a computer screen displaying a schematic of the exhibition floorplan. When Vanderstaeten walks close to a large combat vehicle on display, the gyroscope compensates for the magnetic interference that normally would have skewed skewed curve of a usually unimodal distribution with one tail drawn out more than the other and the median will lie above or below the mean. skewed Epidemiology adjective Referring to an asymmetrical distribution of a population or of data the readings. "It's all about providing a suite of sensors that work with each other and basically provide a check for each other," says Shadle. Vanderstaeten carries a personal digital assistant with her to monitor her progress. It enables her to adjust the algorithms to reflect her height and stride more accurately. Shadle says the PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) A handheld computer for managing contacts, appointments and tasks. It typically includes a name and address database, calendar, to-do list and note taker, which are the functions in a personal information manager (see PIM). will eventually migrate into the pack for hands-free convenience. Company representatives envision the system being used by not only military personnel, but also first responders. Had this system been in place during the 9/11 attacks, the movements of fire fighters and police officers could have been tracked very accurately, says Shadle. An earlier version of the system is being incorporated into the U.S. Army's Land Warrior Land Warrior was a United States Army program, cancelled in 2007,[1][2] that would have used a combination of commercial, off-the-shelf technology (COTS) and current-issue military gear and equipment designed to: |
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