Naval Total Asset Visibility (NTAV) Precision Asset Location (PAL) - System Tests on the SS Curtiss

Two precision asset location (PAL) systems were tested on the SS curtiss in Port Hueneme, California. The two systems were a commercial-off-the- shelf direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) system from WhereNet, Inc., and a prototype ultra-wideband (UWB) system from Multi-Spectral Solutions, Inc. (MSSI) . The objective was to evaluate the two technologies for operation in high multipath shipboard environments. Testing was performed in open cargo spaces (worst-case multipath) and partially loaded cargo spaces (blockage). A reference laser surveying system was installed for comparison and accuracy tests were conducted over a cargo space. Both systems operated in the open-space shipboard environment and to each vendor's specified accuracy. Each system's accuracy decreased during blockage experiments. The University of Southern California's UltRa Lab characterized the SS Curtiss shipboard environment and found it had delay spreads on the order of 3 microsec, far exceeding the 10 to 300 ns delay spreads of office and industrial environments. Multipath nulls were also measured, with some as deep as 30 to 40 dB.Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center Port Hueneme CA is the author of 'Naval Total Asset Visibility (NTAV) Precision Asset Location (PAL) - System Tests on the SS Curtiss' with ISBN 9781423517160 and ISBN 1423517164.