Methods and apparatus for installation alignment of equipment
AssigneeHoneywell International Inc.
InventorsRalph R. Jones, Douglas M. Weed
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for installation alignment of an inertial reference unit (IRU) with vehicle axes when the IRU is installed within the vehicle is provided. The vehicle axes include roll, pitch, and yaw axes. The method includes recording vehicle angular position data including roll and pitch, using an angular position measurement device with the vehicle being in a starting position, recording IRU data including roll and pitch, receiving measured nose plunge data, computing initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections, applying initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections to measured nose plunge data. A nose plunge yaw misalignment is determined using corrected nose plunge data and utilized to adjust the assumed heading reference.
Claims24
A method for installation alignment of an inertial reference unit (IRU) with vehicle axes, the vehicle axes including roll, pitch, and yaw axes, said method comprising:
- recording vehicle angular position data, including roll and pitch, using an angular position measurement device, the vehicle being in a starting position;
- recording IRU data, including roll and pitch;
- assuming a heading reference value, the assumed value to be included in both the vehicle angular position data and the recorded IRU data;
- receiving measured nose plunge data;
- computing initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections;
- applying initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections to measured nose plunge data;
- and
- determining a nose plunge yaw misalignment using the measured nose plunge data to adjust the assumed heading reference.
An apparatus configured for installation alignment of an inertial reference unit (IRU) with vehicle roll, pitch, and yaw axes comprising:
- a vehicle angular position measurement device;
- and
- a computer configured to be coupled to said angular position measurement device, said computer further configured to be coupled to the IRU, said computer configured to record a starting condition of the vehicle in the roll and pitch axes, the vehicle being in a starting position, through data received from said angular position measurement device, record IRU data including roll and pitch received from the IRU at the starting position, assume a single heading value for both said angular position measurement device data and the IRU data, record IRU data including roll, pitch, and heading received from the IRU at multiple nose plunge positions, compute initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections, apply initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections to data received from the IRU at the multiple nose plunge positions, and determine a nose plunge yaw misalignment using the IRU data from the multiple nose plunge positions to adjust the heading value.
A method for installation alignment of an inertial reference unit (IRU) within a unit, the unit having roll, pitch, and yaw axes, said method comprising:
- recording roll and pitch of the unit, using an angular position measurement device, the unit being in an arbitrary starting position;
- recording roll and pitch of the unit using the IRU;
- assuming a heading reference value for the unit, the assumed value to be included in both the angular position device data and the recorded IRU data;
- rotating the unit in a single axis to a first position;
- recording roll and pitch of the unit using the IRU;
- rotating the unit in the same single axis to a second position;
- recording roll and pitch of the unit using the IRU;
- computing initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections;
- applying initial roll and pitch misalignment corrections to measured IRU data from the first position and the second position;
- and
- determining a yaw misalignment for the unit using the measured IRU data to adjust the assumed heading reference.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.