Position and Orientation from Asynchronous Lidar in GNSS Denied Environments

Abstract. This study investigates the use of a distributed asynchronous lidar system for augmented position and orientation determination in Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) denied environments. An asynchronous lidar design is one in which the laser transmitter and detectors/receivers are disconnected and carried on separate platforms. This unique geometry offers observational redundancy that can be used to estimate the trajectory of the receiver platforms. The paper presents the results of simulation experiments, first examining single epoch solutions and then considers estimates of position and orientation along simulated flight trajectories. The results show that as long as the laser transmitter is operated above the GNSS denied environment, the system is able to simultaneously estimate position and orientation for multiple receiver drones, even for extended periods of GNSS outages. The accuracy of position and orientation estimation is dependent on the exact flight path and the number of lidar receivers in the solution, but with favorable geometry the accuracy of position estimation can approach that provided by a high precision GNSS solution.