What is a Remote Weapons Station?

A Remote Weapons Station (RWS) is a remotely operated weapons platform that utilizes light and medium caliber artillery shells. Typically, an RWS contains sensing components (angular rates, accelerations, etc.), motor drives, a turret, and a computer. Today, companies like Electro Optic Systems Pty Ltd are patenting next generation Electro Optic RWS that are gyro-stabilized, combat ready, and built for precision targeting(1).

Since the two most important characteristics for an RWS are aiming speed and accuracy, advanced methods of stabilization are required to ensure that targets are correctly dealt with. The most important component in this task is the gyroscope.

Introduction

Ensuring our infrastructure is running, and our job and construction sites are safe should be a top priority. However, the maintenance and inspections needed is inherently dangerous and often time-consuming and repetitive, making drones instrumental and valuable tools.

Drones can capture all kinds of data from images and videos, LiDAR scanning, mapping data, and a variety of data types related to air conditions, location, and precision location, including inertial data. As a result of using drones for these initial inspections, we can more quickly pinpoint the location and cause of the problem, and ensure that fewer humans are put in harm’s way.

Aiding with Optics

The main limitation for many microelectromechanical (MEMS) based inertial measurement units (IMUs) is the realization that drift will always be a factor when left uncompensated for. In today's market many solutions have been developed using GNSS data, magnetics, or optical sensors.

Optical data, when fused with an IMU, is useful for both dynamic and static applications depending on the level of computer vision implemented into the system. By using the IMU as a reference for orientation, optical data can be used to mitigate drift of the gyroscopes.

Inertial Labs has been continuously developing next generation systems that can use a combination of day and night operation cameras to stabilize heading.

Aerial Photogrammetry

Aerial Photogrammetric analysis may be applied to a single image or high-speed imagery and remote sensing to detect, measure and record complex  3D motion fields. This is done by feeding measurements and image analysis into computational models that estimate the relative motions and positions with increasing accuracy. While in its early days it was used mostly for topographic mapping, it’s application base has recently expanded into numerous industries. Modern sensors and software capabilities allow for the creation of precise 3D renderings and point cloud generation which is widely used in industries such as Filming, Sports, Game Development, Agriculture, Real Estate, Forensics, Land Surveying, and in Civil or Architectural Engineering. For these different applications, two methods of photogrammetry are used in practice today, Aerial Triangulation (AT), and a more modern approach, Direct Georeferencing.

Affordable and Hassle-Free Solutions for Obsolete Sensors

Companies that adopted the first microelectromechanical (MEMS) accelerometers and inertial measurement sensors in the 1990s have struggled to find affordable solutions to replace sensors that have been discontinued due to the advent of newer technologies. Although the newer generations of sensors feature exponential performance improvements and are available at a drastically reduced cost, they often are not configured to work with existing software, interfaces, or housing. However, with MEMS devices now being able to compete with many fiber-optic systems, a new market is on the rise for replacing dated sensors that may or may not be commercially available anymore. Inertial Labs offers options to customize sensors so that customers don’t need to invest time to make them fit into existing systems