Author: GPS World Staff

Nikken Lease uses u-blox positioning for trackable pallet

Japan-based Nikken Lease has tapped into positioning and cellular technologies from u-blox for its new trackable pallet, Transeeker.

Transeeker is a pallet equipped with u-blox’s cellular and positioning technologies for accurate tracking: u-blox cellular UMTS/HSPA(+) module LISA-U200-62S and u-blox 7 standalone GNSS module, EVA-7M.

For the first time, Nikken Lease is offering its GNSS-enabled pallets as a rental service. Made of plastic, the pallets are reusable, making them a good ecological alternative to their wooden counterpart.

“When we designed Transeeker, we wanted to ensure that we could locate a pallet precisely and retrieve it nationwide at low costs for our customers,” said Tsumura, planning director for Nikken Lease. “u-blox is just the right partner with excellent product performance and unique features such as CellLocate.”

Embedded in Transeeker, the LISA-U200-62S of the LISA-U2 series is equipped with CellLocate, u-blox’s proprietary hybrid positioning technology enabling stand-alone location estimation based on surrounding GSM/UMTS cell information in conjunction with GPS positioning data.

The module also offers worldwide W CDMA(UMTS) and GPRS/EDGE coverage, and an easy migration to u-blox GSM/GPRS, CDMA and LTE modules. Also found in Transeeker, the EVA-7M single GNSS module features the reliable performance of the u-blox 7 positioning engine (receiving GPS, GLONASS, QZSS and SBAS signals) and delivers high sensitivity and minimal acquisition times in the ultra-compact EVA form factor.

“This collaboration with Nikken Lease should help us strengthen our position in the Japanese market as a key player for IoT applications,” explains Tesshu Naka, Country Manager of u-blox Japan. “We are looking forward to more collaboration with Nikken Lease.”

October 11, 2016
New software-upgradeable GNSS OEM board announced by NavCom

NavCom Technology announced the release of the Onyx multi-frequency GNSS OEM board. Offering integrated StarFire/RTK GNSS capabilities, Onyx features 255-channel tracking, including multi-constellation support for GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou and Galileo. It also provides high performance in GNSS receiver sensitivity and signal tracking as well as patented multi-path mitigation, interference rejection and anti-jamming capabilities.

Processed with Snapseed.

The new Onyx GNSS OEM board is a fully upgradeable GNSS receiver, allowing the receiver to upgrade from free DGPS signal sources such as WAAS to increased accuracy services with integrated features StarFire with Rapid Recovery or RTK with RTK Extend through software optioning alone. The software-enabled features are sold in bundles, but can also be purchased individually, to suit changing application needs.

StarFire, NavCom’s Global Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS), provides real-time global 5-centimeter accuracy without a base station.

Integrated StarFire is now simply activated via an over-the-air licensing system that sends a StarFire License via satellite directly to the StarFire-capable receiver from NavCom’s StarFire operations center.

NavCom booth at InterGeo.

“The release of Onyx advances NavCom’s ability to grow products and services meeting the customer-driven demands of uptime, accuracy, and feature rich capabilities,” said Steve Ault, NavCom’s GNSS Product Marketing Manager. “NavCom continues to innovate the StarFire technology through the advanced capabilities inherent to Onyx which will be fully realized over the life of this new product.”

NavCom Technology, Inc. is exhibiting at InterGeo in Hamburg, Germany.

Navcom Technology, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deere & Company.

October 11, 2016
Geodata key to new business world, says Intergeo report

Geodata is key to the digital future and a 4.0 business world, according to a new report released at InterGeo in Hamburg, Germany. At the heart of this business vision is the networking of sensors that must have location data in order to fulfill their value.

The 116-page Intergeo Report, in parallel German and English, includes sections on smart cities, public participation, autonomous driving with live mapping, and surveying on the open seas. An eight-page GNSS Update section features CEOs answering questions market focus of their GNSS products, the role of geo-referencing in the Internet of Things, the coming-of-age of precise point positioning (PPP), and the opportunities for GNSS opened up by autonomous driving.

Access to company-specific geodata offers managers in the automotive industry a competitive ad- vantage. Apps show today’s motorists the way to the nearest electrical charging station. Soon, the same motorists will talk to their on-board computer to find a parking space. It will guide them instantly to the nearest free space. Geoinformation will then no longer just be found in the satnav but also in the integrated sensor in the road paving infrastructure and in the status reports of other road users.

Networking Everything. The Internet of Things is taking shape and permeating all areas of life. At its center are the tiny pieces of information that assign coordinates to a parking space, a loading berth for a container ship, a screw in the shelves of a supplier’s warehouse, or the alarm system of a family home. Degrees, minutes and seconds show people the way, answer a range of questions and help make informed decisions. Geoinformation is both an asset and an essential source of information.

Content Is King. Key companies in the geoinformation sector have naturally taken onboard the value of geoinformation. It forms the basis of their business activities. The use of geodata as added value for their products is still very new. Esri realized early in the sector that selling software is no longer sufficient on its own. Only data enables customers to harness the value of products. Cloud solutions store the mountains of data, while platforms deliver the answers.

Such new business leading lights as AirBnB, Uber, Facebook and Google could not survive without geoinformation. It is part of increasingly intelligent systems that make users’ lives a little easier and more comfortable, optimizing processes and enabling people to operate and participate in ways that were previously impractical or impossible.

The examples are myriad. Consider just a few. Digitally aided planning and construction in building information modeling not only streamlines processes and reduces costs, it enables public participation in planning procedures, using digital models of planned reality. Aerial surveys and data gathering by UAV, not only for traditional survey needs but for growing requirements in natural resource planning and management, infrastructure inspection and maintenance, surveillance and security, and more. Guidance systems for the blind.

All require location data. GNSS (satnav) is the core supplier of this data, but must be augmented by other technologies in special environments.

Releasing Geodata Pays Dividends. Managers of geodata realize they need to release it in order for it to lead them to “more” – more value, more benefits, more transparency, more importance. Geoinformation and digitization are inextricably interlinked, and this is just the beginning.

October 11, 2016
Are you experienced? Tell us about jamming, spoofing, RF interference encounters

We talk a lot about — and publish a lot of technical articles about — GPS/GNSS jamming, spoofing and unintentional RF interference in GPS World magazine and on this website. Clearly it is an emerging and potentially huge problem. How much of it goes on right now? Tell us very briefly (10 seconds it will take) if You are experienced with these incidents.

One week only! Final results will be collected on October 18 and published in the November issue of the magazine.

Answer now, and you’ll be entered in a drawing to win a $50 gift card. Go to env-gpsworld-integration.kinsta.cloud/septpoll now!

October 11, 2016
Firmware update for inertial Ekinox and Apogee sensors

SBG Systems displays their full range of MEMS-based inertial sensors at InterGeo 2016, with a major firmware update for its Ekinox and Apogee product lines. The key improvements in the update include a 15% improvement on orientation and navigation data and better robustness under harsh environments. This firmware is a complete rework of existing functionalities with the addition of new features and improved configuration interface to ease device configuration.

Performance. Up to 15% inertial navigation system (INS) performance improvement from a reworked data fusion algorithms; and improved performance using NMEA GNSS aiding.

Ease of use. Alignment and new status flags have been added to ensure the unit reaches optimal accuracy. The unit can now compute and output on each port a full deported navigation and ship motion data. A completely reworked web interface with 3D views eases mechanical installation. Stability and reliability improvements are reported, especially while using two GNSS at the same time

Various input and output protocols have been added. See SBG Systems website for further information.

October 11, 2016
Trimble sells unmanned aircraft system business to Delair-Tech

Strategic alliances with Delair-Tech and Microdrones expand UAS platform options while leveraging Trimble software and data solutions.

Delair-Tech has acquired Trimble’s Belgium-based Gatewing unmanned aircraft system (UAS) engineering and manufacturing business.

Delair-Tech is a provider of long-range, fixed-wing UAS solutions for industrial inspection and asset management applications headquartered in Toulouse, France. Delair-Tech intends to grow the acquired business as part of its portfolio, according to a joint press release with Trimble. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“This transaction is part of our continuing program to tighten our corporate focus,” said Ron Bisio, vice president of Trimble’s Geospatial Division. “Trimble will remain actively engaged in the market by leveraging its brand-agnostic software technology for a broader range of UAS platforms.”

Gatewing has been reported as part of Trimble’s Engineering and Construction segment. The divestiture will not have a material impact on either overall or segment financial results.

Strategic Alliances Expand UAS Options. In addition, Trimble has entered into strategic alliances with Delair-Tech and Microdrones of Siegen, Germany. Microdrones is a provider of multi-rotor UAS solutions.

Under the agreements, Delair-Tech and Microdrones will become preferred providers of both fixed-wing and multi-rotor UAS solutions, with Trimble providing software, data processing and deliverables to UAS operators across multiple vertical markets.

“Trimble chose to partner with Delair-Tech and Microdrones to strengthen our UAS portfolio,” said Bisio. “Working together, Delair-Tech and Microdrones will deliver industry-leading UAS platforms and Trimble will focus on core software technology for UAS that integrates positioning, remote sensing and photogrammetry. The end goal is to deliver a complete solution to transform work processes and efficiency for our customers.”

“We are proud that Trimble selected us to be their fixed-wing UAS solution provider. With the addition of Gatewing to our portfolio, we can provide one of the most innovative and extensive portfolios of long-range, fixed-wing commercial UAS solutions to support Trimble and its distributors,” said Michael Delagarde, CEO of Delair-Tech. “The portfolio will continue to provide dedicated end-to-end solutions, from hardware to fully processed aerial data, which can then be turned into actionable business intelligence.”

“Microdrones complement the Delair-Tech fixed-wing lineup with one of the most resilient and stable Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft on the market today. This provides a complete product line of tightly integrated solutions for mapping,” said Microdrone’s president, Vivien Heriard Dubreuil. “We’re excited to support Trimble distributors to enable a one-stop shop for UAS mapping solutions and to enable their global customers to produce exceptional results on every job.”

October 10, 2016
Swift Navigation offers multi-band, multi-constellation receiver
The Piksi Multi.

Swift Navigation has announced its newest product, Piksi Multi, a multi-band, multi-constellation high-precision GNSS receiver for the mass market.

A San Francisco-based startup, Swift Navigation introduced the first Piksi GNSS receiver in January.

Swift Navigation will be showing Piksi Multi at InterGeo Oct. 11-13 in Hamburg, Germany. The company’s booth is located in Hall A1, in the US Pavilion, booth #B1.061.

Autonomous devices require precision navigation, especially those that perform critical functions. Swift Navigation solutions use real-time kinematics (RTK) technology, providing location solutions that are 100 times more accurate than traditional GPS.

Piksi Multi supports GPS L1/L2 and is hardware-ready for GLONASS G1/G2, BeiDou B1/B2, Galileo E1/E5b, QZSS L1/L2 and SBAS. Multiple signal bands enable convergence times measured in seconds, not minutes. Multiple satellite constellations enhance availability in new environments.

The Piksi Multi with an evaluation board.

The Piksi Multi Evaluation Kit also has been upgraded with all-new components. The new kit contains two Piksi Multi GNSS modules, two integrator-friendly evaluation boards, two GNSS survey-grade antennas, two high-performance radios, so that it can deliver best-in-class reliability and range — well over 10 kilometers — and all of the accessories required for rapid prototyping and integration.

Swift Navigation expects Piksi Multi to ship in early in the first quarter of 2017. The company is accepting pre-orders in its online store at www.swiftnav.com.

Piksi Multi is an open platform. It enables customers to run Linux OS on its second core, allowing them to quickly prototype and adopt their own applications in a well-known and widely used environment.

Industries standing to benefit most from the new product include: autonomous vehicles, UAV, precision agriculture, robotics, space, survey and control and R&D applications requiring precise positioning.

Swift Navigation was built on the notion that highly-precise RTK solutions should be offered at an affordable price. Benefits of Piksi Multi for customers include:
- Centimeter-level accuracy using RTK
- Fast convergence times using multi-band
- Robust positioning using onboard MEMS hardware
- Open platform with onboard Linux
- Rapid prototyping with a complete evaluation kit
- Future-proof hardware with in-field software upgrades
“With the launch of Piksi Multi, Swift is taking another huge step forward in delivering affordable and highly-precise GNSS technology,” said Swift Navigation CEO, Timothy Harris. “Piksi Multi will continue to revolutionize the autonomous devices category, which is growing at an unbelievable rate.”
October 10, 2016
GSA releases first GNSS User Technology Report
What lies ahead in the GNSS chipset and receiver domain, and what are the trends sure to transform the GNSS landscape of tomorrow? To answer those questions, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) has released its first GNSS User Technology Report.

In recent years, GNSS technology has experienced a period of rapid development — both on the side of global constellations and user receivers. With this development, European systems such as EGNOS and Galileo are becoming increasingly present in GNSS receivers, providing enhanced performance to users both in Europe and worldwide. Even with the increased deployment of other positioning technologies, because it is the most widespread and cost-effective source of location information, GNSS will remain at the core of all positioning technology.

“In view of the changing user needs in terms of expected positioning experiences, the appearance of new and modernized GNSS signals, and advances in semiconductor technologies, we felt the need to take a closer look at the impact these changes will have on user technology and GNSS’ role in the positioning solutions of the future,” said GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides.

A closer look

The outcome of this closer look is the GSA’s first GNSS User Technology Report. As a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report, the GNSS User Technology Report zeros in on the state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with analyzing the trends that are sure to change the entire GNSS landscape.

The report provides an in-depth analysis of GNSS user technology as it pertains to:
- mass-market solutions
- transport safety and liability-critical solutions
- high-precision, timing and asset management solutions.
In addition, the report gives a general overview of the latest GNSS receiver technology, common to all application areas, along with a supplement on location technologies that looks beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape.

Written with contributions from leading GNSS receiver and chipset manufacturers, the GNSS User Technology Report is meant to serve as a valuable tool to support planning and decision-making in regards to developing, purchasing and using GNSS user technology.

“GNSS user technology is, now more than ever, experiencing a rapid and exciting evolution, answering the needs of ubiquity, automation and secure positioning,” said des Dorides. “This report explores in detail all of these new developments and how they will bring continuous location service, reliability and robustness to the main application domains.”

Among the findings:
- Nearly 65 percent of all chipsets and modules currently on the market support multiple constellations.
- Within the next few years, it is expected that 100 percent of all new devices will be multi-constellation capable.
- The leaders in multi-constellation capability are mass-market receivers and high-accuracy professional receivers, with nearly 30 percent already capable of using the four available global constellations.
- Receivers targeting such safety-critical applications as aviation must wait for new technologies to be proven and new standards or regulations to become available before implementing them.
- In terms of supported frequencies, 30% of all receivers implement more than one frequency, mostly in high precision.
- With the increasing demand for better resilience across all applications, the need for higher accuracy and integrity that automation demands, adoption of dual-frequency solutions (E1/L1 + E5/L5) is expected to grow.
- In the mass market, the chipset supply chain is extremely consolidated, with a few players worldwide driving innovation.
- For liability and safety-critical transport solutions, a consolidated industry with an important European presence dominates innovation in automotive, maritime and aviation, while new players are expected to emerge in such new applications as autonomous vehicles.
- In high precision, timing and asset management, the suppliers are specialized in various professional fields, although their products are based on a relatively low number of GNSS chipsets.
The report is free and can be downloaded here.
October 10, 2016
US Naval Observatory chooses NovAtel GPS anti-jam technology

The GAJT by NovAtel.

The United States Naval Observatory (USNO) has selected NovAtel’s GPS Anti-Jam Technology (GAJT) to satisfy a requirement for a controlled reception pattern antenna capability at sites throughout the Department of Defense Information Network (DoDIN).

The DoDIN is the core global enterprise network of the United States military and is depended upon for secure and sensitive voice, data, video and bandwidth services. This latest order brings the number of NovAtel GAJT antennas ordered by the U.S. Navy to more than 600.

GAJT protects GPS-based navigation and precise timing receivers from intentional jamming and accidental interference. It is a null-forming antenna system that ensures satellite signals necessary to compute position and time are always available.

The commercial off-the-shelf product comes in versions suitable for land, sea, fixed installations and smaller platforms such as UAVs. Military vehicles and platforms, networks and timing infrastructure also benefit from the protection that GAJT provides. There is no need to replace GPS receivers already installed, as GAJT works with civil and military receivers, and is ready for M-code, according to NovAtel.

NovAtel’s manufacturing techniques and quality processes mean that that the company can ramp up quickly to meet volume requirements, the company said.

“This order underlines our ability to deliver GAJT in volume and on time,” said Michael Ritter, president and CEO of the Canada-based NovAtel. “GAJT has now been shipped and is in use operationally by 12 allied nations around the globe. We are grateful for the rigorous technology selection process conducted by USNO which led to this latest order.”

The U.S. Naval Observatory is located in Washington, D.C.

Located in Washington, D.C., the USNO is one of the oldest scientific agencies in the United States, with a primary mission to produce Positioning, Navigation and Timing for the United States Navy and the United States Department of Defense.

October 10, 2016
Register by Tuesday for Friday’s adjacent band compatibility workshop

The U.S. Department of Transportation will host its fifth workshop on the GPS Adjacent Band Compatibility Assessment effort on Oct. 14 in Washington, D.C. The workshop is open to the general public by registration only. Those who would like to attend the workshop are asked to register by Tuesday, Oct. 11.

Read the Federal Register Notice here.

The purpose of this workshop is to discuss the results from testing of various categories of GPS/GNSS receivers to include aviation (non-certified), cellular, general location/navigation, high precision and networks, timing, and space-based receivers. The workshop also will include a discussion on the development of use-case scenarios for these categories.

Register at Global Positioning System Adjacent Band Compatibility Assessment Workshop V.

DATE/TIME: Oct. 14 / 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time).

LOCATION: RTCA, Inc., 1150 18th St. NW, Suite 910, Washington, D.C. 20036.

October 10, 2016
Expert Opinions: New US FAA rule on UAVs

Q: What is the single most important take-away from the new Federal Aviation Administration rule on UAVs?

Al Simon, Marketing Manager, Navigation Products, Rockwell Collins

A: This regulation brings some stability to industry looking to invest in UAS operations and should stimulate technology development that benefits all classes of UAS. This first step should also allow the FAA to turn their attention to the more compelling parts of the market such as Beyond Visual Line of Sight operations and integration into the non-segregated airspace like Class A and Class E.

Mitch Narins, Principal, Strategic Synergies

A: UAV proliferation and safe operation is and will be a continuing challenge. Two of the many concerns I have are: the means that state and local governments will be able to be involved in UAS operations, specifically with privacy issues, as I am sure that the FAA does not want to deal with local complaints; and the FAA’s continued acceptance of GPS/GNSS sole means for positioning, navigation, and timing information and, in the case of UAS, potentially to support command and control links.

Eric Gakstatter
Contributing Editor, GIS & UAV, Geospatial Solutions

A: The new UAV FAA Part 107 rules, effective August 29, 2016, opened up the entire United States to the world of UAVs for business use. Part 107 rules significantly lower the barrier to operating UAVs for business by no longer requiring the traditional FAA pilot certificate to operate a UAV for business. The response to the new rules echo the hyper-demand for UAVs for business use. In the first 15 days, more than 5,000 people took the Part 107 test.

October 10, 2016
Antenova’s Beltii miniature antenna designed for small PCBs in GNSS devices

Antenova Ltd., manufacturer of antennas and RF antenna modules for machine-to-machine (M2M) and the Internet of Things, is now offering Beltii (P/N SR4G013), an embedded antenna that measures 15.6 x 3.3 x 4.4 millimeters and operates with all satellite navigation constellations.

The antenna has been designed to work over a very small ground plane on a small printed circuit board (PCB), where it can be placed in a corner position, and does not need any ground clearance.

Beltii works with GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou and Galileo, and can add a positioning capability to any small, lightweight device at 1559-1609 MHz. It is suitable for wearable electronics, trackers, drones, navigation devices, and sports applications, the company said.

It is the latest in Antenova’s lamiiANT range of antennas, which are manufactured from FR4 materials and use the latest in dielectric constant laminate substrates to construct smaller, more efficient antennas.

“Beltii is a brand-new design using new materials. It beats the typical larger, ceramic patch antennas on all counts: it is smaller, more efficient, and performs better,” said Antenova CEO Colin Newman. “It is a great addition to our range of positioning antennas.”

Beltii radiation pattern at 1557.42 MHz.

Because the performance of a wireless device depends on the performance of its antenna, and the performance of the antenna depends on how it is integrated into the PCB, Antenova’s antenna designers give the integration requirement top priority and design each antenna so that it can be integrated easily, and to perform well in situ within the device. Antenova calls this concept DFI, or Design For Integration.

Antenova also provides detailed datasheets with advice on integrating the antenna, and offers the services of its engineering team to help customers and OEMs with antenna integration if required.

Evaluation boards (P/N SR4G013-U1) are available with full details of all of Antenova’s embedded antennas.

October 7, 2016