Kurt R. Zimmerman
Papers
3
Total Citations
33
H-Index
3
About
Kurt R. Zimmerman is a pioneering researcher in the field of GPS-based sensing and control systems, with a particular focus on space vehicle navigation and autonomous robotics. His work in the mid-1990s helped establish differential carrier phase GPS as a viable and highly precise technology for real-world aerospace applications, achieving relative position accuracy to less than 1 cm RMS — a dramatic leap beyond previously available methods. Zimmerman's most influential contribution, "Experimental Demonstration of GPS for Rendezvous Between Two Prototype Space Vehicles" (1995, 19 citations), showcased the practical use of GPS techniques for sensing both relative position and attitude during complex multi-vehicle maneuvers such as rendezvous and station-keeping. Building on this foundation, he extended the technology into laboratory robotics environments, demonstrating that pseudolite-based indoor GPS systems could effectively guide and control prototype robotic space vehicles. His earlier theoretical groundwork, laid in his 1994 paper on GPS-based control for space vehicle rendezvous, provided the conceptual framework that made these experimental breakthroughs possible. Though his citation counts are modest, Zimmerman's research arrived at a formative moment in autonomous vehicle navigation, helping shape how engineers think about precision GPS sensing for both space and robotic systems.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2
- 3GPS-Based Control for Space Vehicle Rendezvous3 citations · 1994