SBIR-STTR Award

Alt-PNT Visual-based Localization in Android Tactical Assault Kit (ATAK)
Award last edited on: 9/10/2023

Sponsored Program
STTR
Awarding Agency
DOD : AF
Total Award Amount
$799,944
Award Phase
2
Solicitation Topic Code
AF21A-TCSO1
Principal Investigator
Rajeev Surati

Company Information

Skyline Nav AI Inc

62 Putnam Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139
   (508) 472-5319
   N/A
   www.skylinenav.com

Research Institution

MIT

Phase I

Contract Number: FA8649-21-P-1364
Start Date: 4/16/2021    Completed: 7/19/2021
Phase I year
2021
Phase I Amount
$49,983
Skyline Nav AI Inc. helps military and non-military personnel navigate in a GPS-degraded/spoofed environment using visualization of the skyline. This technology provides a backup to GPS technology that the military and commercial markets are highly reliant upon for navigation. Currently, the only practical backup to GPS is a map and compass (dead reckoning). This presents huge operational risks in a military setting. While there have been other localization efforts based on skyline, they haven’t succeeded due to computational complexity. Skyline provides a secure and efficient visual alternate for navigation in a GPS-degraded setting.

Phase II

Contract Number: FA8649-22-P-0704
Start Date: 5/11/2022    Completed: 6/12/2023
Phase II year
2022
Phase II Amount
$749,961
Skyline Nav AI Inc. helps military and non-military personnel navigate in a GPS-degraded/spoofed environment using visualization of the skyline. This technology provides a backup to GPS technology that the military and commercial markets are highly reliant upon for navigation e.g. "Alternative Positioning Navigation and Timing" (alt-PNT). Currently, the only practical backup to GPS is a map and compass (dead reckoning). This presents huge operational risks in a military setting. While there have been other localization efforts based on skyline, they haven’t succeeded due to computational complexity. Skyline provides a secure and efficient visual alternate for navigation in a GPS-degraded setting. Army Research Lab has invested heavily in deep r&d and over two years on this approach.- It's extremely promising. We have licensed that technology and are going to make a commercial-grade implementation for real use and testing by the Air Force. Once this technology is implemented and there is readily enabled access to Digital Surface Models, there is potential to improve GPS technology with this approach.