Drift is the fundamental error in inertial navigation systems. It describes the characteristics of how the estimated state varies from the true-life state over time. Drift is a function of the time-based bias of the inertial measurement unit forcing the final state estimate. Any system that is based on an inertial process will drift unless it can be corrected by an absolute and low error measurement. The quality of the IMU and the quality of the aiding sensors determine the drift in an INS.
Illustration 1: Free inertial drift comparison of several IMUs, X axis.
Illustration 2: Free inertial drift comparison of several IMUs, Theta axis.
Article ID:
188
