ANELLO Photonics has launched the ANELLO Aerial INS, a high-performance Inertial Navigation System (INS) designed to provide resilient positioning for autonomous aerial platforms operating in contested environments.
The system is built around the company’s proprietary Silicon Photonic Optical Gyroscope (SiPhOG) technology and integrated with multi-band GNSS receivers. It is purpose-built for demanding platforms such as Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) UAS, maritime VTOL units, and heavy-lift cargo drones. By utilizing an advanced EKF-based sensor fusion engine and flight-profile-tuned algorithms, the system delivers over 98% navigation accuracy. Notably, the unit maintains precise guidance and control through high-dynamics and GNSS jamming, spoofing, or occlusion without requiring external cameras or traditional fiber-optic cables.
The technology is engineered to provide assured performance across diverse conditions, including night missions, low-light operations, and flight through fog or cloud cover. The 3-axis SiPhOG optical gyros feature less than 0.5 degrees per hour of unaided heading drift, allowing for reliable dead-reckoning during outages. For integration, the system includes dual triple-frequency all-constellation GNSS receivers ready for RTK/PPP corrections and features a rugged, vibration-tolerant design suitable for fixed-wing and multirotor airframes.
Dr. Mario Paniccia, Co-Founder and CEO of ANELLO Photonics, said, “Customers flying real missions need resilient navigation when GPS isn’t reliable. By combining our SiPhOGs with our airborne-optimized sensor-fusion algorithms and integrated multi-band GNSS, the ANELLO Aerial INS delivers accurate navigation solutions in a cost-effective SWaP-friendly package. This allows UAVs to hold course through GPS jamming, multipath, spoofing, or outages using only ANELLO without the need for cameras or fiber-optic cables and allows the warfighter to complete their mission safely and successfully.”
The system supports standard flight-stack interfaces, including PX4 and ArduPilot drivers, and offers a variety of communication protocols such as Ethernet, RS-232, RS-422, and CAN. It also features an NMEA-compliant GNSS interface, allowing it to serve as a drop-in replacement for conventional receivers.
Dan Magy, CEO at Firestorm, added, “The ANELLO SiPhOG™ technology is a game changer for our warfighters. The ability to navigate in GPS-denied or spoofed environments without cameras or fiber-optic cables—in small, lightweight systems—are essential for future combat missions. The ANELLO team has developed an Aerial solution that seamlessly integrates into existing avionics with minimal effort. This type of capability is essential in today’s conflict areas where our adversaries actively disrupt GPS, making ANELLO a powerful upgrade for all modern aerial platforms.”
This launch extends the reach of ANELLO Photonics, which already provides proven ground and maritime inertial navigation solutions. The company’s products have been validated through multiple U.S. Department of Defense operational test events and are currently shipping to a wide range of customers.
