Modular Missile Inertial Sensor Redundancy for Fault Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing inertial sensor systems for lightweight missiles face challenges in achieving high-quality control with sufficient safety, fault tolerance, and bandwidth while being cost-effective, as they require high-performance sensors that meet conflicting requirements such as wide measurement range and high accuracy.
Innovation Solution
A modular inertial sensor system with redundant sensors of different measurement properties, including bandwidth, vibration strength, and accuracy, which are processed by a central control processor to facilitate error detection and correction, allowing for scalable redundancy and reduced costs and construction volume.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If high-performance sensors with wide measurement range and high accuracy are used, then measurement precision and reliability are improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The inertial sensor system is divided into multiple independent sensor modules, each containing a subset of inertial sensors. Each module can be independently processed and evaluated, allowing the system to achieve high reliability through modular redundancy without requiring a single complex high-performance sensor to handle all measurement requirements simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
Different inertial sensor modules are assigned different measurement properties optimized for specific flight phases rather than requiring all sensors to meet all requirements. This allows each sensor module to be locally optimized for particular conditions (e.g., high bandwidth for maneuvering, high accuracy for navigation), reducing overall system complexity while maintaining high measurement precision where needed.
2Reliability
If redundant sensors with different measurement properties are deployed, then reliability and error detection capability are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses multiple independent inertial sensor modules that can be independently evaluated for plausibility. Each module's output can be cross-checked against others, enabling error detection and reliability verification without requiring a single complex redundant system. The segmentation allows parallel processing of multiple sensor sets.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically selects and weights sensor modules based on current flight conditions and measured plausibility. During different flight phases, different sensor modules may be activated or given different weights based on their performance characteristics. This dynamic adaptation allows the system to maintain high reliability while managing complexity through conditional activation rather than constant operation of all redundant sensors.
3Reliability
If multiple inertial sensor modules are used for error detection and correction, then fault tolerance is improved, but construction volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The inertial sensor system is segmented into multiple compact modules that can be distributed throughout the missile structure. Each module contains a subset of sensors and can be independently processed, allowing for fault tolerance through spatial distribution rather than concentrating all sensors in a single large unit. This segmentation enables parallel processing and cross-validation with minimal volume overhead.
Solution Approach 2:
The inertial sensor modules are designed with multi-functionality to perform multiple roles: primary measurement, error detection, and cross-validation. The same hardware infrastructure supports all these functions simultaneously, reducing the need for separate dedicated components and minimizing overall construction volume while maintaining high fault tolerance capabilities.
4Adaptability or versatility
If sensors optimized for multiple properties are used, then adaptability is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
Different inertial sensor modules are optimized for different measurement properties appropriate to specific flight phases or functional requirements. Rather than manufacturing expensive multi-optimized sensors, the system uses specialized sensors in specialized modules, each manufactured for a specific purpose. This local optimization reduces per-sensor manufacturing costs while maintaining overall system adaptability through modular composition.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments the adaptability requirement into multiple specialized sensor modules rather than requiring a single sensor to handle all measurement properties. Each module can be manufactured independently with optimized characteristics for its specific function, reducing manufacturing complexity and cost compared to producing sensors that must meet all requirements simultaneously. The segmented architecture allows standard manufacturing processes to be applied to each module type.
Data Source
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AI summary
A particularly modular inertial sensor system for use in an inertial navigation system of a missile comprises a first inertial sensor base module, a second inertial sensor base module, and a system-wide control system. The first inertial sensor base module has at least two first inertial sensors of a first inertial sensor type and at least two second inertial sensors of a second inertial sensor type, different from the first inertial sensor type. The second inertial sensor base module has at least two first inertial sensors of the first inertial sensor type and at least two second inertial sensors of the second inertial sensor type, different from the first inertial sensor type.The system-wide control system includes a central control processor, which is coupled to the first inertial sensor base module and the second inertial sensor base module, and which is designed to validate sensor measurements of the first and second inertial sensors of the first inertial sensor base module with the sensor measurements of the first and second inertial sensors of the second inertial sensor base module.