Q-SiNG reaches an important milestone with its downscale test campaign

The European Defence Fund project Q-SiNG advances its research activities with a new experimental campaign.

Castelldefels, 27 October 2026. The European Defence Fund (EDF) project “Quantum-based Simultaneous inertial Navigator and vector Gravimeter” (Q-SiNG) has reached an important milestone with the first experiment of the downscale test campaign conducted off the Catalan coast at Sant Feliu de Guíxols. During the campaign, the Q-SiNG demonstrator, comprising motion sensors, electronics and navigation software, was tested at sea, with Q-SiNG consortium partner IQUA providing the boat and carrying out the main experimental activities.

The campaign represents an intermediate step towards Q-SiNG’s subsequent upscale testing by the beginning of next year. It provides the consortium with an opportunity to assess the demonstrator under different operating conditions and, importantly, to learn from its behaviour before moving to testing at a larger scale. The results and lessons learned will be used to identify potential improvements, refine the demonstrator’s hardware and navigation software, and prepare the system for the next stage of experimental activities.

“Moving from laboratory research and development to testing at sea is an important step for Q-SiNG. This downscale campaign allows us to put the technologies we have been developing together into a real experimental environment, learn from their behaviour and prepare the subsequent upscale tests,” says Dr Ismael Colomina, Q-SiNG Project Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer of GeoNumerics. “Q-SiNG is also a good example of how European cooperation can bring together complementary scientific and industrial expertise to investigate new approaches to navigation in environments where GNSS cannot be relied upon.”

The downscale campaign comprises several subtests addressing different capabilities and operating conditions of the Q-SiNG demonstrator. These include navigation tests at the surface and underwater, under different GNSS availability conditions, together with the assessment of its gravimetry capability. The first test has been a navigation and  kinematic marine gravimetry test where GNSS-derived accelerations and inertial measurements will be combined to estimate gravity vectors. The same test will also serve the purpose of continuously tracking the drift of the Q-SiNG navigation system with no GNSS ranging signals. In the underwater test the navigation performance of the Q-SiNG inertial measurements combined with water pressure and acoustic measurements will be assessed. At this stage of the project, the purpose of the campaign is not to demonstrate final system performance, but to generate experimental evidence and experience that can guide further development.

Q-SiNG brings together organisations from Spain, France and Italy in a collaborative European research effort coordinated by GeoNumerics. The project is funded by the European Union through the EDF.

Q-SiNG investigates advanced technologies for navigation in environments where Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals are unavailable or cannot be relied upon. The project combines research on quantum and conventional motion sensing, inertial navigation and gravimetry with the development of the associated electronics and navigation software. The resulting technologies are being progressively integrated into a demonstrator and evaluated through an experimental programme that includes downscale and subsequent upscale testing. A central element of Q-SiNG is the investigation of quantum-based inertial sensing and its integration with conventional inertial sensors. Quantum accelerometers offer the prospect of highly stable acceleration measurements, while conventional inertial sensors provide the bandwidth and dynamic response required for navigation on moving platforms. Q-SiNG investigates how these complementary characteristics can be combined in a hybrid inertial system and exploited by advanced navigation algorithms. The project also investigates the use of the same inertial measurements for vector gravimetry, enabling a single integrated system to support both navigation and the observation of variations in the Earth’s gravity field. This combination is particularly relevant in GNSS-denied environments, where inertial navigation must operate autonomously for extended periods and where improved knowledge of the gravity field can provide additional information for navigation and other applications.

 

GeoNumerics SL (Castelldefels, Spain) is a research and development R&D-intensive SME specialising in geomatics, accurate and reliable navigation, and multi-sensor hybrid systems. Its activities focus on advanced methods and software for high-accuracy positioning and trajectory determination.

The Centre National De La Recherche Scientifique (Paris, France) is represented by the Laboratoire Temps Espace (UMR 8255) located in Paris Observatory-PSL, host of the French primary time and frequency standards, with research covering atom-interferometry inertial sensors metrology, celestial reference frames, and history of astronomy. 

Civitanavi Systems SpA (Porto Sant’Elpidio, Italy), founded in 2012 and part of Honeywell since 2024, develops ITAR-free tactical-to-strategic-grade inertial navigation and stabilisation systems based on proprietary FOG technology, complemented by MEMS/quartz accelerometers and GNSS receivers for civil and defence applications.

Geomatics Research & Development SRL (Lomazzo, Italy) is an SME that studies, designs and develops innovative and highly customized solutions based on geomatic technologies. The geophysics team develops software and performs the processing, modelling and interpretation of potential field data for research and industrial applications.

IQUA Robotics SL (Girona, Spain) is an SME that designs, manufactures, and commercialises hovering Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) and related technologies for advanced underwater exploration, precise mapping, and detailed seabed inspection.

NAVANTIA SA (San Fernando, Spain) is an international company specialized in shipbuilding and the integration of advanced maritime systems. It develops, integrates, and validates navigation, communications, combat, and control systems for complex naval platforms, leveraging extensive expertise in engineering, digital innovation, and large-scale defence programmes.

SENER Aeroespacial SA (Tres Cantos, Spain) is an industrial and engineering group specialising in Aerospace, Defence, and Science, with strategic focus on Attitude and Orbit Control (AOCS) and Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) systems, particularly multi-sensor hybrid navigation technologies.

PROJECT DETAILS
Acronym: Q-SiNG.
Title: Quantum-based Simultaneous inertial Navigator and vector Gravimeter.
Period: 2021-12-01 to 2027-02-28.
Funding: European Defence Fund (EDF), European Commission (EC) grant 101102424.
Coordinator: GeoNumerics (ES).
Other participants: Centre National De La Recherche Scientifique (FR), Civitanavi Systems (IT), Geomatics Research & Development (IT), IQUA Robotics (ES).Project subcontractors: NAVANTIA (ES), SENER Aeroespacial (ES).
Project web page: Q-SiNG

Q-SiNG, "Quantum-based Simultaneous inertial Navigator and vector Gravimeter" is a research project funded by the European Union under the European Defence Fund in the framework of the Open call dedicated to SMEs for development of innovative and future future-oriented defence solutions. Q-SiNG has received funding from the European Defense Fund 2021 within the call "Open call dedicated to SMEs for development of innovative and future future-oriented defence solutions". Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Commission as granting authority. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.