Accurate Position and Azimuth Control for Fire Support Assets

General Information

• Self-contained, inertial navigation and surveying system that provides accurate position data in meters, azimuth reference in mils, and is capable of rapid and accurate self-alignment by gyrocompass techniques
• Determines true or grid azimuth lines for weapon orientation and target acquisition
• GPS enhances the system by providing GPS aided functionality and on-the-move update and initialization capability

Specs

• Weight: 135 pounds
• Accuracy:
  • Horizontal: 4.0 meters CEP
  • Vertical: 2.0 meters PE
  • Azimuth 0.4 mils PE

FMS/International Partners (for IPADS)

• Saudi Arabia
• Jordan
• Iraq

History

• The original system, Position and Azimuth Determining Systems (PADS), was fielded in the early 1980’s
• The next generation Improved Positioning & Azimuth Determining System (IPADS) was fielded in 2006 and increased the accuracy and capability of the aging PADS
• IPADS-G further added GPS capability and was field in 2012