Guidance, Navigation & Control
Reliable guidance and navigation algorithms are the foundation for safe, precise autonomous operation.
Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) covers the engineering methods that allow vehicles and systems to estimate their state, plan motion, and maintain stable, accurate behavior in real-world conditions. Our work spans the full workflow—from sensor integration and state estimation to control-law design and closed-loop validation—supporting UAVs, robotics, aerospace systems, and complex mechatronic platforms.
Accurate navigation depends on the correct interpretation of sensor data (IMU, GNSS/RTK, magnetometers, barometers, cameras, and lidar). We develop and tune estimation pipelines to achieve robust position, velocity, and attitude tracking, even in challenging environments. On top of this, guidance and control algorithms enable smooth trajectory tracking, disturbance rejection, and safe recovery behaviors under uncertainties such as wind, vibration, latency, and partial sensor degradation.
In real systems, control performance is strongly affected by modeling uncertainty, disturbances, actuator limits, and sensor noise. We therefore combine analytical design with simulation-based verification to ensure stability and performance across operating envelopes. Typical workflows include linearization and frequency-domain checks, time-domain closed-loop simulations, and robustness assessments for varying conditions and configurations.
For dynamic and safety-critical applications, we support calibration of simulation models using test data and system identification. This improves accuracy for key parameters such as damping, friction, actuator dynamics, and sensor biases. With validated models, we can tune controllers more efficiently and predict behavior more reliably before hardware testing.
Guidance functions enable mission behaviors such as waypoint navigation, path following, loitering, landing approaches, and obstacle-aware routing. Navigation functions provide the state estimates needed to execute those missions, while control laws translate guidance commands into actuator outputs with stability and precision.
Safety and compliance are essential in autonomous and aerospace-grade systems. We design and verify fail-safes, integrity checks, and fallback modes that handle degraded sensors, GNSS loss, communication dropouts, and out-of-envelope conditions—helping ensure predictable behavior during anomalies.
Our experience includes supporting integrated GNC stacks with ground control systems and telemetry, post-processing of logs for performance evaluation, and documentation for verification and validation activities. This enables traceability from requirements to implementation and test evidence throughout the development cycle.
Guidance and control development support
- Sensor integration and state estimation (IMU, GNSS/RTK, vision, lidar)
- Control-law design and tuning for stability and tracking performance
- Trajectory guidance, waypoint navigation, and mission logic development
- Model validation, system identification, and closed-loop verification
Tools & validation environment
Typical tools and validation resources used in GNC programs:
- Simulation
- Software-in-the-loop (SITL)
- Hardware-in-the-loop (HITL)
- Digital twin / scenario testing
- Estimation & filtering
- Sensor fusion and calibration
- Bias/scale-factor correction
- Fault detection and consistency checks
- Control verification
- Stability and robustness checks
- Tracking performance evaluation
- Actuator saturation and limits handling
- Field testing & logs
- Telemetry and health monitoring
- Flight/drive log analysis
- Model calibration with test data
- Safety & fail-safes
- GNSS loss and degraded modes
- Geofencing and mission constraints
- Recovery behaviors and abort logic
- Documentation
- Requirements traceability
- Verification and validation evidence
- Certification-ready reporting (program-dependent)