Hardened scalar/vector magnetometer array brings near-quantum-class magnetic navigation performance to compact, shock-limited, and cost-constrained flight systems.
— PNI Sensor today announced that it will present CubeMag, a ruggedized, mass-producible, high-sensitivity scalar/vector magnetometer array for magnetic navigation, at the 2026 Joint Navigation Conference (JNC).
Magnetic navigation and magnetic-aided guidance place demanding requirements on magnetometer sensitivity, robustness, size, weight, power, and cost. While high-performance scalar magnetometers can deliver the sensitivity needed for magnetic anomaly measurement, many existing solutions remain too fragile, complex, expensive, or difficult to produce for practical use across flight systems. CubeMag closes that gap by combining near-quantum-class scalar magnetic performance with vector measurement capability in a compact, low-SWaP-C array that can be produced at scale using commercial components.
“CubeMag was developed to make high-performance magnetic navigation practical for platforms where conventional scalar magnetometer solutions are too fragile, costly, or difficult to integrate,” said George Hsu, CTO at PNI Sensor. “By combining high sensitivity, vector observability, rugged packaging, and scalable production, CubeMag provides a survivable sensor foundation for magnetic navigation and magnetic-aided guidance.”
CubeMag employs a compact cubic arrangement of PNI Sensor’s RM3100; a commercial off-the-shelf tri-axial vector magnetometers, to synthesize high-resolution scalar magnetic measurements while preserving directional observability. The array architecture enables noise reduction, redundancy, and graceful degradation through spatial averaging, while remaining compatible with external platform magnetic compensation techniques commonly used in weapon systems.
Recent hardware development has produced fully assembled multi-channel CubeMag panels capable of simultaneous sampling across nodes. Mechanical packaging and electromagnetic shielding have been refined to improve noise performance and channel-to-channel consistency across the array, while deterministic timing and temperature compensation support improved measurement stability.
Laboratory characterization and controlled field testing demonstrate improved magnetic noise performance and stability resulting from the CubeMag architecture. The presentation also highlights modeling and experimental work used to identify root causes of low-level noise mechanisms and guide mitigation strategies.
The CubeMag design leverages PNI’s RM3100 magnetometer technology, which has prior space-radiation qualification heritage through NASA and the European Space Agency and has demonstrated long-term survivability in other challenging environments. This heritage helps significantly reduce technical and qualification risk relative to bespoke or fragile sensing technologies.
“The significance of CubeMag is that it shows commercial sensor arrays can achieve sensitivity and stability previously associated with laboratory or quantum-class sensors, while avoiding the fragility, cost, and production constraints that have limited their deployment,” said PNI Sensor’s Hsu. “That combination is especially important for flight systems, munitions applications, and other platforms that require rugged, immediately-producible magnetic navigation capability.”
The presentation, titled “A Ruggedized, Mass-Producible, High-Sensitivity Scalar/Vector Magnetometer Array for Magnetic Navigation,” will be given in Session B10: Magnetic and Gravity Anomaly-Based Navigation 2. The paper is authored by Joseph Miller and George Hsu of PNI Sensor, with Adam Rutowski of the AFRL Munitions Directorate.
About PNI Sensor
PNI Sensor develops precision magnetometer, motion tracking, and sensor-fusion technologies for military, commercial, scientific, and consumer applications. PNI’s magnetometry and sensor-fusion expertise supports navigation, guidance, and sensing systems that require accuracy, ruggedness, low power consumption, and reliable operation in challenging environments. PNI Sensor is headquartered in Windsor, California.
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Name: Becky Oh President and CEO
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Organization: PNI Sensor
Phone: (707) 566-2260
Website: https://www.pnisensor.com
Release ID: 89193639
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