The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 06, 1994
Filed:
Dec. 07, 1992
James R Huddle, Chatsworth, CA (US);
Litton Systems, Inc., Beverly Hills, CA (US);
Abstract
A method and apparatus for performing on-board corrections to the computed navigation variables of an inertial system on an aircraft while flying over a body of water. Onboard instruments, including a barometric altimeter and a radar altimeter, measure the vertical distance of the aircraft above an ellipsoidal model of the earth and above the body of water respectively. An on-board computer calculates the differences between such heights over a plurality of points along the path the aircraft travels over the water as indicated by its inertial navigation system. The differences are compared with a map of the undulation of the geoid encompassing the region to determine the deviation of the navigated course from the true course. Appropriate corrections to the aircraft's inertial system may then be made to reduce error.