Inertial Navigation System Upgrade Engineering
DDI consulted with a defense contractor to modernize a legacy inertial navigation system (INS), a project centered on preparing the software for an eventual migration from a PowerPC architecture to an ARM‑based platform. As the senior software engineer, the first responsibility was to clarify and finalize the upgrade requirements by identifying exactly which software components would be affected and how those changes aligned with the long‑term hardware transition.
To support the effort, DDI built a staged development environment using C++, Python, Nucleus OS, Git, Visual Studio, and Bash. This allowed DDI to isolate legacy modules, validate toolchains, and ensure that new components could be integrated without disrupting existing system behavior. A significant portion of the work involved reverse‑engineering key areas of the codebase to understand how the original system handled navigation algorithms, timing, and hardware interactions.
With that understanding, DDI designed targeted software upgrades that met the intended functional and performance requirements while maintaining compatibility with the current platform. Throughout the project, DDI participated in technical reviews to assess the impact of proposed changes, verify assumptions, and ensure that the upgrade path supported both near‑term improvements and the future ARM‑based architecture.
Reverse-engineered a complex INS system controlling current PowerPC and future ARM microcontrollers.
Designed, developed, and integrated improvements that elevated both system efficiency and effectiveness.
Contributions resulted in measurable gains, allowing for eventual portation to a more advance platform.