WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. -- April 22, 2013 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has been awarded a follow-on Phase II contract by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to demonstrate an open architecture system that enables plug-and-play navigation under the All Source Positioning and Navigation (ASPN) program.

The ASPN program seeks to enable low-cost, robust and seamless integration of navigation sensors. Northrop Grumman is leveraging its scalable node architecture to provide a reconfigurable plug-and-play system that will accommodate any combination of a large and rapidly expanding array of sensors and measurements as they become available from different vendors or as the mission requires.

Under an 18-month contract, Northrop Grumman will demonstrate the scalability of its open architecture by implementing it into Android-based hand-held devices such as mobile phones. The architecture is scalable across navigation systems – from low-cost personal devices to high-end aircraft navigators – and will significantly reduce integration costs.

"This architecture for plug-and-play navigation systems will increase the flexibility and effectiveness of the sensors available to the warfighters," said Charles Volk, a vice president and a chief technologist at Northrop Grumman's Electronic Systems sector. "The ability to dynamically modify the navigation sensor sources will be a force multiplier for the warfighters."

The ASPN architecture was developed to deliver a product that aligns with open, industry-accepted standards and interfaces, and maximizes use of commercial off-the-shelf software products to ensure openness of the architecture and to protect against obsolescence.

Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems, cybersecurity, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information. 

  CONTACT: Yolanda Murphy
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         yolanda.murphy@ngc.com