Far above your head, constellations of satellites are working always to supply the positioning, navigation, and timing techniques that quietly run fashionable life. Often known as the worldwide navigation satellite tv for pc system, or GNSS, alerts from these satellites present the inspiration for cell networks, power grids, the web, and GPS. And more and more, their dependability is below risk.
GPS alerts might be jammed—intentionally drowned out with different highly effective radio alerts—and spoofed, the place inaccurate alerts are launched to idiot positioning techniques. GPS interference has been documented in Ukraine, the Center East, and the South China Sea.
However startup SandboxAQ believes that synthetic intelligence, when mixed with navigation techniques that learn Earth’s magnetic area, often known as MagNav, may mitigate these threats to GNSS. “Our technology does not replace [GNSS], but can enrich existing navigation systems to improve safety and serve as an alternative primary navigation source in case of GPS outages,” says Luca Ferrara, basic supervisor of SandboxAQ’s navigation division.
SandboxAQ’s navigation know-how, referred to as AQNav, makes use of quantum magnetometers—gadgets that may detect modifications in magnetic fields very exactly by measuring subatomic particles—to supply a studying of the Earth’s magnetic area. “We are looking for the unique fingerprint of magnetized rock formations in the Earth’s crust,” says Ferrara.
Synthetic intelligence is then used to precisely pinpoint the place of an plane, by comparability with recognized maps of the magnetic area. The AI additionally eliminates any exterior interference generated by the plane, resembling from sudden actions or alerts from its electrical techniques; particular person plane have distinctive traits in terms of introducing magnetic interference.
Thus far, the US Air Pressure, Boeing, and Airbus have all made check flights utilizing the system. “Since May 2023, we have deployed and tested many iterations of our hardware and software,” Ferrara explains. “AQNav has flown hundreds of kilometers in different types of aircraft, from single-engine aircrafts to large military transports. It has been tested in real flight scenarios, including two major military exercises by the US Air Force.”
SandboxAQ’s group—and inspiration for the thought—originated at Google’s mum or dad firm, Alphabet, between 2016 and 2022. The preliminary concept was to seek out purposes for synthetic intelligence and quantum applied sciences developed inside Google’s moonshot manufacturing facility.
