Spatial, Temporal, and Orientation Information Contested Environments (STOIC)
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is the predominant means of obtaining PNT information for a majority of systems and applications, both military and civilian. In particular, GPS has effectively displaced almost all other sources of PNT for military applications as diverse as munitions; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR); communications; and battlespace management. However, GPS is vulnerable to interference due to its low signal strength. This combination of ubiquity and fragility has led many to conclude that sole reliance on GPS is untenable.
Military dependence on GPS has led to a variety of research & development (R&D) and program efforts to counter sources of interference. For example, use of phased array antennas provides improved GPS signal reception. The performance and packaging of inertial sensors for dead reckoning during GPS degradation or outage continues to improve, yet accumulation of inertial error over time eventually requires separate external sensors to maintain or restore accurate positioning performance. Similarly, while precision clocks have also made great strides in achieving higher performance at lower cost, size, weight and power (CSWaP), these systems also accumulate significant error over time.
R&D efforts have also evaluated non-traditional sensors for navigation, such as visual imaging and radio frequency (RF) signals of opportunity (SoOPs) sensors, but these also have limitations. Visual imaging requires unobstructed views of feature rich scenes that may not always be available. SoOPs, as well as their associated backchannel datalink, are susceptible to interference.
To address these limitations, DARPA is soliciting proposals for the Spatial, Temporal and Orientation Information in Contested Environments (STOIC) program to develop PNT systems that provide GPS-independent PNT with GPS-level timing and positioning performance. STOIC comprises three primary elements that when integrated have the potential to provide global PNT independent of GPS: 1) long-range robust reference signals, 2) ultra-stable tactical clocks, and 3) multifunctional systems that provide PNT information between cooperative users. When complete, the STOIC program will provide GPS-like and better PNT for contested environments where GPS performance is degraded or unavailable.
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