Navigation and guidance systems are a critical part of any autonomous vehicle. In this\npaper, a novel sensor grid using 40 KHz ultrasonic transmitters is presented for adoption in indoor 3D\npositioning applications. In the proposed technique, a vehicle measures the arrival time of incoming\nultrasonic signals and calculates the position without broadcasting to the grid. This system allows\nfor conducting silent or covert operations and can also be used for the simultaneous navigation of a\nlarge number of vehicles. The transmitters and receivers employed are first described. Transmission\nlobe patterns and receiver directionality determine the geometry of transmitter clusters. Range and\naccuracy of measurements dictate the number of sensors required to navigate in a given volume.\nLaboratory experiments were performed in which a small array of transmitters was set up and the\nsensor system was tested for position accuracy. The prototype system is shown to have a 1-sigma\nposition error of about 16 cm, with errors between 7 and 11 cm in the local horizontal coordinates.\nThis research work provides foundations for the future development of ultrasonic navigation sensors\nfor a variety of autonomous vehicle applications.
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