Advanced Navigation opens robotics manufacturing facility

Sydney-based Advanced Navigation, which specialises in artificial intelligence (AI) for robotic and navigation technologies, has unveiled a new high-tech robotics facility for autonomous systems based at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) TechLab.

Located in the Sydney suburb of Botany, the facility will scale up the manufacturing of Advanced Navigation’s AI navigation systems for GPS-denied environments, including its Digital Fibre-Optic Gyroscope (DFOG) technology, Boreas.

Advanced Navigation is one of only four companies in the world with the capability to manufacture strategic grade fibre-optic gyroscopes. This technology empowers reliable navigation for marine vessels, space missions, aerospace, defence, autonomous vehicles and flying taxis. The company deploys its unique AI-based physics algorithms to solve complex challenges earth-bound and beyond.

“There is a critical need to improve Australia’s economic complexity and sovereign capabilities,” said Xavier Orr, Advanced Navigation’s CEO and co-founder. “A key step is to build our industrial capacity in high-tech, as well as drive knowledge exchange and propel collaborative initiatives between government agencies, academic institutions and industry leaders.”

Adopting a vertical integration framework, the new facility houses equipment and processes for automated manufacturing utilising machine learning. This guarantees the delivery of reliable, durable and high-quality navigation systems.

In addition to the manufacturing capability, the facility will be home to extensive research collaborations between Advanced Navigation and UTS.

“The collaboration between UTS’s global research leaders in autonomous systems technology and Advanced Navigation’s exceptional team of scientists and engineers, utilising UTS Tech Lab’s cutting-edge facilities, highlights our commitment to developing sovereign capabilities for defence and space,” said Professor Andrew Parfitt, Vice-Chancellor and President of UTS.

This collaboration will expedite the commercialisation of several socially impactful technologies, including:

• Light Detection Altimetry and Velocimetry (LiDAV) Systems – LiDAV delivers precise three-dimensional velocity and altitude information relative to the lunar surface, enabling complex autonomous landing procedures and confident exploration on the moon. The technology is set to board US-based space systems company Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander as part of NASA’s ongoing Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program.
• Cloud Control Group – A revolutionary cloud-based solution that allows pilots and mission planners to remotely command and control a swarm of uncrewed vehicles across air, land and sea through a web browser.
• Guiding visually impaired passengers – As part of the NSW Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) program, Advanced Navigation has developed an indoor positioning technology to support members of the visually impaired community navigate safely inside underground train stations.