GPS World

Author: GPS World Staff

  • System of Systems: OCX passes first qualification

    System of Systems: OCX passes first qualification

    OCX Passes First Qualification

    Raytheon, US Air Force Complete Test Milestone

    On March 4, Raytheon successfully passed the first formal qualification test milestone for the U.S. Air Force’s GPS Next Generation Operational Control System (GPS OCX). The new system offers significant improvements to the GPS on which the U.S. military and millions of civilians rely, including enhanced availability, accuracy and security.

    The event was the Configuration Item Qualification Test (CIQT) milestone for the Launch and Checkout System (LCS). The system provides launch and early orbit checkout capabilities for the modernized GPS III satellites and implements 77 percent of the cybersecurity capabilities for the overall OCX program. The testing was successfully conducted in a representative operational environment with a government-provided GPS III satellite simulator.

    The LCS CIQT Run-for-Record was completed more than one month ahead of the plan established in mid-2015, clearing the way for LCS to proceed toward the Factory Qualification Test, the next major qualification event. The FQT test will be at the integrated system level and will take place this summer.

    GPS OCX is being developed by Raytheon under contract to the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, which is replacing the current GPS operational control system. The OCX Launch and Checkout System provides an early delivery of a large subset of the overall OCX capability, and will support the GPS III satellite launches.

    Congressmen Seek Delay to NDGPS Closings

    Four U.S. congressman sent a letter to the Department of Transportation, asking the DoT to delay shutting down Nationwide Differential GPS (NDGPS) sites, a proposal that was posted in the Federal Register.

    The congressmen are asking for a delay until the “administration has decided upon and implemented a resilient national positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) architecture.”

    “We do not dispute,” they wrote, “the administration’s determination that NDGPS is sufficiently like the Wide Area Augmentation system (WAAS) in its phenomenology and services such that it provides only an incremental benefit to the nation’s PNT architecture. However, some or all of the 62 NDGPS sites (and associated equipment) proposed for elimination could play an important role in achieving the PNT architecture America needs.

    “Ceasing transmissions, decommissioning, and disposing of them before we are assured they are not useful to future systems is against our national interest and would not be the best use of government assets and funds.”

    Signers were John Garamendi of California, Peter DeFazio of Oregon, Frank Lobiondo of New Jersey, and Walter B. Jones of North Carolina. Read the full text of the letter.

    IRNSS Completing

    At press time, India was expected to put into orbit its seventh and final navigation satellite on April 28, thus completing the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS).

    IRNSS-1G is expected to launch aboard a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket from India’s spaceport at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

    IRNSS is designed to provide accurate position information service to users across the country and region, up to an area of 1,500 kilometers.

    Jamming on the Borderline

    South Korea issued a warning in late March after detecting satellite signal disruptions that appeared to be coming from North Korea. The capital city of Seoul appeared to be the target.

    Officials said North Korea discharged a large amount of radio waves to jam GPS signals in the region.

    “We’ve detected signs that North Korea has been sending radio waves to the capital area since a month ago to disrupt GPS signals,” a senior government official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “North Korea had been sending test waves since last month, but today, they discharged the largest amount.”

    The disruptions could cause mobile phones to malfunction and affect planes and ships that rely on GPS for navigation. No damage has so far been reported in the military or among civilians, officials said.

    Since 2010, GPS disruptions have occurred three times in South Korea, and all have been blamed on the North.

    Southern Counter. On April 7, the U.S. State Department confirmed the jamming in a public communique, stating the the jamming was causing signal disruptions to airplanes, ships, and buoys in the area “surrounding Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces out to about 100 nautical miles.” On April 8, the South Korean government said it would “beef up its system to protect GPS signals” but did not explain how.

    South Korea is developing an eLoran system, which would be far more difficult to jam than GPS.

    A Long March-3A carrier rocket carrying the 22nd BeiDou satellite lifts off March 30.
    A Long March-3A carrier rocket carrying the 22nd BeiDou satellite lifts off March 30.

    22 BeiDou

    China launched the 22nd BeiDou satellite into orbit on March 29. BeiDou-22 (or BeiDou-2 I6) was launched at 20:11 UTC (4:11 local time) by a Long March-3A rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center.

    China launched the 21st BeiDou satellite on Feb. 1, the second in a series of BeiDou launches scheduled for 2016. The BeiDou constellation is planned to be completed in 2020.

    The new satellite, the sixth BeiDou-2 IGSO, will be used to replenish the current operating regional system.

    The satellite, after entering its designed work orbit and finishing in-orbit testing, will join others already in orbit and improve the stability of the system, preparing for BDS to offer global coverage.

    After landing in French Guiana, the 13th and 14th Galileo satellites, still within their canisters, were unloaded to be taken by road to the Guiana Space Centre. (Photo: ESA)
    After landing in French Guiana, the 13th and 14th Galileo satellites, still within their canisters, were unloaded to be taken by road to the Guiana Space Centre. (Photo: ESA)

    Next Pair Prepped for Galileo

    The latest pair of navigation satellites has reached Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, according to the European Space Agency (ESA). This starts a new Galileo launch campaign that will culminate in a May 24 launch of the 13th and 14th satellites in the constellation.

    A second launch is planned for this fall, with four satellites carried aloft on a customized Ariane 5 for the first time, bringing the count to 18 Galileo satellites in orbit by the end of the year.

    The pair of satellites left ESA’s technical centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, on April 4, cocooned within protective air-conditioned containers. They were then driven to Luxembourg Airport, where they were loaded aboard a Boeing 747 cargo jet for a dawn takeoff the following morning.

    The satellites touched down at Cayenne — Félix Eboué Airport in French Guiana at 11:15 a.m. local time on Tuesday. Still within their canisters, they were driven to the Guiana Space Centre and unboxed that evening within the cleanroom environment of the centre’s S1A payload preparation building. A fit check is scheduled next, to ensure the satellites can be attached to the dispenser.

    esnc16ESNC 2016

    The largest international competition for the commercial use of satellite navigation once again seeks outstanding ideas and business models, with prizes worth a total of €1 million in more than 25 categories.

    The deadline for submissions to the European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC) is June 30. The official website provides all relevant information on prizes, partners, and terms of participation. The ESNC is geared toward individuals and teams from companies, research facilities and universities around the world.

  • SpaceX awarded GPS III satellite launch contract

    SpaceX awarded GPS III satellite launch contract

    A SpaceX Falcon 9 stands ready for launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The Air Force awarded a contract for GPS III Launch Services to SpaceX.
    A SpaceX Falcon 9 stands ready for launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The Air Force awarded a contract for GPS III Launch Services to SpaceX.

    The U.S. Air Force has awarded SpaceX the first competitively sourced National Security Space (NSS) launch services contract in more than a decade.

    Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) was awarded a contract for GPS III Launch Services. This is a firm-fixed price, standalone contract with a total value of $82,700,000.

    SpaceX will provide the government with a total launch solution for the GPS-III satellite, which includes launch vehicle production, mission integration and launch operations and spaceflight certification. The launch will be the second GPS III launch and is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, in May 2018.

    “This GPS III Launch Services contract award achieves a balance between mission success, meeting operational needs, lowering launch costs, and reintroducing competition for National Security Space missions,” said Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves, Air Force Program Executive Officer for Space and SMC commander.

    Another launch service provider, United Launch Alliance (ULA), chose not to compete for the contract.

    GPS III is the next generation of GPS satellites that will introduce new capabilities to meet the higher demands of both military and civilian users. The satellite is expected to provide improved anti-jamming capabilities as well as improved accuracy for precision navigation and timing. It will incorporate the common L1C signal, which is compatible with the European Space Agency’s Galileo global navigation satellite system and compliment current services with the addition of new civil and military signals.

    This is the first of nine competitive launch services planned in the FY 2016 President’s Budget Request under the current Phase 1A procurement strategy, which covers awards with FY 2015-2018 funding. The next solicitation for launch services will be for a second GPS III satellite. This award marks a milestone in the Air Force’s ongoing efforts to reintroduce a competitive procurement environment into the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program as directed by Frank Kendall, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics.

    The Phase 1A procurement strategy reintroduces competition for national security space launch services. Under the Phase 1 strategy, United Launch Alliance (ULA) was the only certified launch provider. In 2013, ULA was awarded a sole-source contract for launch services as part of an Air Force “block buy” of 36 rocket cores that resulted in significant savings for the government through FY 2017.

    In May 2015, Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) was certified for EELV launches resulting in two launch service providers that are capable to design, produce, qualify, and deliver a launch capability and provide the mission assurance support required to deliver national security space satellites to orbit. The certified baseline configuration of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Launch System to Falcon 9 Upgrade was recently updated for use in National Security Space (NSS) missions.

    The Air Force Space Command’s Space and Missile Systems Center, located at the Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., is the U.S. Air Force’s center of excellence for acquiring and developing military space systems. Its portfolio includes the Global Positioning System, military satellite communications, defense meteorological satellites, space launch and range systems, satellite control networks, space based infrared systems and space situational awareness capabilities.

  • With IRNSS-1G launch, India completes and renames its navigation constellation

    With IRNSS-1G launch, India completes and renames its navigation constellation

    IRNSS G-1 lifts off aboard a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its thirty-fifth flight.
    IRNSS G-1 lifts off aboard a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its 35th flight.

    India’s network of satellites providing a regional navigation system is now complete with the successful launch of the IRNSS-1G from Sriharikota on April 28. The satellite was then placed into the correct orbit.

    The satellite was launched aboard a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Centre spaceport at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

    The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) constellation has been renamed NAVIC — Navigation Indian Constellation, by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

    With seven satellites in orbit, the constellation’s primary focus is to provide information in the Indian region and 1,500 kilometers around the mainland.

    This is the 34th consecutively successful mission of PSLV and the 13th in its XL configuration.

    Aftter the launch, Modi congratulated all the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) scientists and team for completing the constellation. He also dedicated IRNSS to the nation as NAVIC (Navigation Indian Constellation). He said he appreciated India’s space community for making the country proud through such achievements which have helped in improving the life of common man.

    After PSLV-C33 lift-off at 1250 p.m. local time from the First Launch Pad with the ignition of the first stage, the subsequent important flight events — strap-on ignitions and separations, first-stage separation, second-stage ignition, heat-shield separation, second-stage separation, third-stage ignition and separation, fourth-stage ignition and satellite injection — took place as planned.

    After a flight of 19 minutes 42 seconds, IRNSS-1G was injected into an elliptical orbit of 283 kilometers x 20,718 kilometers inclined at an angle of 17.867 degree to the equator (very close to the intended orbit), following which the satellite successfully separated from the PSLV fourth stage.

    After separation, the solar panels of IRNSS-1G were deployed automatically. ISRO’s Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan, Karnataka took over the control of the satellite. In the coming days, four orbit maneuvers will be conducted from MCF to position the satellite in the Geostationary Orbit at 129.5 deg East longitude.

    IRNSS-1G is the seventh of the seven satellites constituting the space segment of the IRNSS. IRNSS-1A, 1B, 1C, ID, IE and 1F, the first six satellites of the constellation, were successfully launched by PSLV on July 02, 2013, April 04, 2014, October 16, 2014, March 28, 2015, January 20, 2016 and March 10, 2016 respectively. All the six satellites are functioning satisfactorily from their designated orbital positions.

    IRNSS is an independent regional navigation satellite system designed to provide position information in the Indian region and 1500 km around the Indian mainland. IRNSS provides two types of services, namely, Standard Positioning Services (SPS) — provided to all users and Restricted Services — (RS), provided to authorized users.

    A number of ground facilities responsible for satellite ranging and monitoring, generation and transmission of navigation parameters, etc., have been established in 18 locations across India.

  • Draganfly UAS now use GPS + GLONASS

    Draganfly UAS now use GPS + GLONASS

    The Draganfly Commander UAV.
    The Draganfly Commander UAV.

    Draganfly Innovations has added support for GLONASS satellite navigation, which will provide higher accuracy and function in more locations than GPS alone.

    The more satellites that a receiver can see, the more accurate the calculated position is. Adding GLONASS support allows additional satellites to be detected, which is important in situations where fewer satellites are in line of sight because of obstruction by mountains, buildings, trees and other objects, the company said in announcing the addition.

    The Draganflyer Commander, X4-ES, and X4-P unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) now use GNSS receivers that support both GPS and GLONASS. More accurate positional data allow these UASs to hold position more precisely and to better geo-locate images, which in turn provide higher quality data.

    “This is great for our customers, especially those operating in locations where GPS doesn’t work well,” said Draganfly President Zenon Dragan.

    GLONASS in conjunction with GPS allows Draganfly UAS' to geo-locate more precisely.
    GLONASS in conjunction with GPS allows Draganfly UAS’ to geo-locate more precisely.

  • ABI Research forecasts 10 billion IC shipments for connectivity

    ABI Research, the leader in transformative technology innovation market intelligence, forecasts the global wireless connectivity market, excluding cellular connectivity, to reach more than 10 billion annual integrated circuit (IC) shipments by 2021.

    While smartphones will continue to represent the largest market, the introduction of Bluetooth mesh networking, emerging Wi-Fi protocols, enhancements to 802.15.4, such as ZigBee 3.0 and Thread, and the growing trend to develop multiprotocol connectivity system on chips (SoCs), will create new opportunities in various verticals of the IoT market.

    Bluetooth will be in 60% of total devices by 2021. The mobile phone market will account for less than 45% total Bluetooth shipments by this time as Bluetooth Smart continues to grow and branch into new verticals. Bluetooth Smart will be in 16% of devices by this time, with strong growth in smart home and beacon applications, in addition to a significant presence in the connected home and wearable space.

    Wi-Fi will see its most significant growth in IoT verticals, such as wearables, automotive, the smart home, and other nascent IoT verticals. However, by 2021, mobile phones will still account for 55% of the Wi-Fi-enabled device market. Wi-Fi is also branching out into new frequency bands, including 802.11ad (WiGig) for high-speed wireless data transfer and sub-1GHz Wi-Fi HaLow (802.11ah). This will open up new opportunities for 802.11ad in the networking, mobile device, computing, and peripheral space, and in low power IoT devices and wireless sensor network applications for 802.11ah. By 2021, Wi-Fi will be found in 47% of all devices. Forecasts for each Wi-Fi protocol are provided in the market data.

    802.15.4-based technologies, such as ZigBee and Thread, are set to find success in the smart home, achieving a CAGR of 60% between 2016 and 2021. The technology will also see growth in energy management and smart city applications, such as building automation, smart metering, smart lighting, and industrial applications, accounting for more than 28% of devices by this time. However, 802.15.4 will still only be present in less than 9% of the device market by 2021, predominantly due to its absence in the smartphone and consumer electronic markets.

    NFC is also targeting new opportunities for mobile payments in smartphones and wearables, as well as secure pairing and provisioning of IoT devices. It is the growing prevalence of combo ICs, though, that will help drive the market forward, particularly in IoT verticals.

    “These solutions can help eliminate the need for multiple connectivity ICs, reduce complexity and cost, and give manufacturers greater flexibility in targeting multiple applications and use cases using a single SoC,” says Andrew Zignani, Industry Analyst at ABI Research. “Devices incorporating multiprotocol chipsets will be more future-proof and faster to market. Ultimately, this will enable greater scalability and afford OEMs more flexibility and confidence when designing a connected device.”

    ABI Research’s extensive analysis of the wireless connectivity market includes forecasts for technologies ranging from Bluetooth “Classic”, Smart, and Smart Ready to 802.15.4, NFC, and each of the current and future Wi-Fi protocols. Market opportunities for each of these technologies are assessed across more than 15 verticals and 75 end device types.

    These findings are part of ABI Research’s Wireless Connectivity Service, which includes research reports, market data, insights, and competitive assessments.

  • USS Coronado deploys with next-gen UAV controls from Raytheon

    USS Coronado deploys with next-gen UAV controls from Raytheon

    The U.S. Navy’s Naval Air Systems Command and Raytheon have deployed advanced mission control for the MQ-8 Fire Scout, an unmanned helicopter, aboard the Littoral Combat Ship USS Coronado, which is now underway. Navy control hardware and Raytheon control software were combined for robust, flexible command and control of Fire Scout missions in littoral waters.

    The USS Coronado is one of the Navy’s newest Littoral Combat Ships, designed to operate close to shorelines. Coronado’s deployment of Fire Scout extends the fleet’s situational awareness.

    The Fire Scout, developed for the U.S. Navy by Northrop Grumman, is designed to provide reconnaissance, situational awareness, aerial fire support and precision targeting support for ground, air and sea forces.
    The Fire Scout, developed for the U.S. Navy by Northrop Grumman, is designed to provide reconnaissance, situational awareness, aerial fire support and precision targeting support for ground, air and sea forces. (Photo: Creative Commons, CC BY-SA 2.5 NL)

    “Raytheon’s UAV ground controls help support Navy missions without putting sailors’ lives at risk,” said Todd Probert, vice president of Mission Support and Modernization at Raytheon IIS. “Our innovative technology is helping the U.S. military evolve standards of performance and reliability as they accomplish their critical missions more efficiently and effectively.”

    Navy hardware and Raytheon’s software are built with an open architecture, maximizing flexibility to add new technology as needed. Under a related effort, the Navy’s Common Control System, or NCCS, will be able to control any air, ground, surface and subsurface vehicles as they deploy with the fleet. Built on the flexible foundation of Fire Scout MCS, that capability will reduce Navy-wide implementation costs and training requirements for unmanned systems.

    “Our new Fire Scout MCS enables Fire Scout to bring more mission to more areas,” said Captain Jeff Dodge, U.S. Navy, Fire Scout program manager. “Fire Scout is a proven capability in dynamic littoral environments, and now provides the potential for multiple platforms to be controlled from a single MCS aboard the ship.”

    USS Coronado is the first Littoral Combat Ship to use this upgraded Fire Scout MCS operationally, after logging 600+ hours of testing.

    The USS Coronado is a Littoral Combat Ship, designed to operate close to shorelines. (Photo: U.S. Navy)
    The USS Coronado is a Littoral Combat Ship, designed to operate close to shorelines. (Photo: U.S. Navy)

  • Thank you for registering.

    Thank you for registering for the upcoming GPS World webinar, “UAV Design and Applications: Autonomous Relative Navigation and GNSS Robustness for UAV Systems.”

    A link to the live event will be sent to you two hours before the event. Your personalized event URL will be automatically generated by the ON24 system. To ensure receipt of the email, please whitelist this email address by adding it to your contacts: [email protected].

    This presentation will begin on Thursday, May 19, 2016, at 1 p.m. EDT.

    Audience members may arrive 15 minutes prior to live time. You may need to download Flash Player in advance. If you have any questions, please contact event producer Allison Barwacz at [email protected].

  • Tallysman adds triple-band GNSS antennas + L-band

    Tallysman adds triple-band GNSS antennas + L-band

    Tallysman, a manufacturer of high-performance GNSS antennas, has added two triple-band GNSS antennas to its multi-band antenna line.

    Photo: TallysmanThe antennas are designed for precision agriculture, autonomous vehicles and other applications where precision matters. The ability of the antennas to access L-band correction services extends its utility to a wider range of applications.

    The TW3970 is a pole mount, or through-hole mount antenna, which is also available in an embeddable form as the TW3965. Both employ Tallysman’s Accutenna technology and are capable of receiving GPS L1/L2/L5, GLONASS G1/G2/G5, BeiDou B1/B2, Galileo E1/E5a+b plus L-band correction services (1164MHz to 1254MHz + 1525MHz to 1606MHz).

    The TW3970 is housed in a through-hole mount, weather-proof enclosure for permanent installation, with (L braacket, pipe mount or pole mount. The antenna is available with either a flat radome (pictured) or a conical radome. The conical radome is used in permanent mount locations to ward off birds and shed ice and snow.

    The TW3965 is an embeddable antenna available with a wide selection of connectors and custom cable lengths. It can be custom-tuned by Tallysman to ensure optimum performance within the customer’s enclosure.

    Both versions have superior cross polarization rejection to enhance multi-path signal rejection, tight phase center variation (PCV), and an excellent axial ratio.

     

  • CMD Flight gains FAA approval for ADS-B solution

    CMD Flight Solutions has received U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval on its third Collins TDR-94/94D Transponder and GPS pairing, the FreeFlight Systems WAAS 1203C.

    CMD Flight Solutions develops, markets and provides FAA-certified modifications to support NextGen avionics mandates and assists service and installation facilities with modification solutions to satisfy FAA-mandated requirements. The company provides Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) Out on more than 5,000 business and personal aircraft.

    The supplemental type certificate (AML STC) of its ADS-B OUT solution for Part 25 airplanes covers installation of FreeFlight’s 1203C SBAS/GNSS GPS position sensor with Rockwell Collins TDR-94/94D transponders. According to FreeFlight, “The pairing is a cost-effective way to help aircraft owners meet the ADS­-B mandate.”

    ADS-B OUT compliance is due Jan. 1, 2020, in the United States.The 1203C, a 15-channel GPS sensor, is also an approved position source for NextGen applications such as CPDLC, TAWS/FMS, RNP and others.

  • NovAtel launches 40-centimeter correction service, TerraStar-L

    TerraStar-L, a new 40-centimeter (cm) precise point positioning (PPP) correction service, is coming next week from NovAtel.

    TerraStar-L is a subscription-based correction service that delivers GNSS correction data via satellite to users of precision navigation systems. With position accuracy of 40 cm, TerraStar-L is designed for broad accuracy applications such as agriculture, geospatial information systems (GIS) and unmanned vehicle navigation, particularly where tree lines, buildings and other obstructions can be an impediment to continuous positioning.

    With the addition of the TerraStar-L correction service, NovAtel now offers two levels of PPP corrections through its NovAtel CORRECT positioning engine; the new 40-cm accuracy service and a 4-cm service through its TerraStar-C solution.

    By offering two diverse accuracy options, customers have the flexibility to choose the performance level best suited to their application. The correction data for both services provides consistent worldwide accuracy and is delivered over satellite which eliminates the need for a local base station.

    “The robustness and redundancy built in to the TerraStar network infrastructure makes TerraStar correction data extremely reliable,” said Sara Masterson, business development manager of correction services at NovAtel. “When our customers operate in environments with obstructions that can block GNSS signals, TerraStar-L offers a repeatable 40-cm solution, reducing position drifts or jumps. This maximizes uptime and productivity for our customers by providing fast initialization to a reliable decimetre position.”

    NovAtel CORRECT with PPP combines GNSS satellite clock and orbit correction data from TerraStar’s global reference station network service to deliver solutions with high accuracy and instant re-convergence in challenging environments.

    TerraStar-L will be available for order from NovAtel starting May 4.

  • Registration now open for May webinar on UAVs

    Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) — both their design and their many applications — are the topic of GPS World‘s May webinar. The free webinar is scheduled for Thursday, May 19, at 1 p.m. EDT. Register here.

    The webinar, sponsored by Septentrio, will engage you in discussions involving:

    • Self-generated radio-frequency interference aboard UAVs.
    • An autonomous relative navigation tool for in-air UAV refueling.
    • Sensor integration for a UAV designed for industrial environments.
    • Considerations for multi-GNSS integration onto UAV platforms.

    Speakers include:

    • Dennis Akos, a professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
    • Joshua Stubbs, a Ph.D. candidate.
    • Jeff Fayman, CTO, Geodetics.
    • Roy Jeunen, founder, AiRobot.
    • Jan Leyssens, product manager, Septentrio.

    Read the full details of each of the speakers’ presentations below.

    Dennis Akos, Professor, University of Colorado at Boulder
    Dennis Akos, Professor, University of Colorado at Boulder

    Subtopic 1: GNSS Robustness for Unmanned Aircraft Systems
    Presented by Dennis Akos, professor, University of Colorado at Boulder, and Joshua Stubbs, Ph.D. candidate
    When siting the antenna of a GNSS receiver or designing a GNSS-based navigation system, electromagnetic compatibility is an important concern. This is particularly true for airborne platforms. Akos discusses how radio-frequency interference can impact GNSS equipment on unmanned aircraft systems and how robustly the equipment can navigate those systems.

    Joshua Stubbs, Ph.D. candidate
    Joshua Stubbs, Ph.D. candidate

    Subtopic 2: Autonomous Relative Navigation
    Presented by Dr. Jeff Fayman, CTO, Geodetics
    Future UAVS will require relative navigation capability to fulfill a broad range of assisted manned and unmanned missions. A new approach, demonstrated in application to aerial refueling, provides access to accurate relative time-space positioning information (R-TSPI) between platforms.

    Subtopic 3: UAV Operation in Industrial Environments
    Presented by Roy Jeunen, founder, AiRobot
    The distance from an in-flight UAV to the industrial asset that it is observing or inspecting obviously has critical importance for safety, data precision and cost-effectiveness. The AiRobot Ranger counters this problem by displaying the distance between the UAV and the object of interest on multiple smart phones or tablets, ensuring the extra situational awareness that is crucial for professional UAV operations.

    Jan-Septentrio
    Jan Leyssens, Product Manager, Septentrio

    Subtopic 4: Practical Tips on How to Avoid Problems While Integrating High-Accuracy GNSS Receivers Aboard UAVs
    Presented by Jan Leyssens, product manager, Septentrio

    Register today. If you can’t attend the live event, you are invited to still register — you will be sent the on-demand version 24 hours after the event concludes. The on-demand version will be available until May 19, 2017.

     

  • GNSS dead-reckoning receiver offered by SkyTraq

    GNSS dead-reckoning receiver offered by SkyTraq

    SkyTraq Technology Inc., a fabless GNSS positioning technology company, has introduced the S1722DR8 GNSS dead-reckoning receiver, integrating a 3-axis gyroscope/accelerometer and barometric pressure sensor with a GNSS receiver.

    Using wheel/speed data from vehicle to perform sensor-fused solution, S1722DR8 achieves 100-percent coverage. It is designed for vehicles applications requiring high performance and reliable uninterrupted positioning.

    The S1722DR8 can be flexibly mounted in any orientation, and does not have to be placed horizontally as in conventional dead-reckoning solutions using single-axis gyroscope. The auto-calibration feature of S1722DR8 greatly simplifies installation procedure; the short calibration time upon first use also improves user experience.

    The S1722DR8 GNSS dead-reckoning receiver, compared to a U.S. penny.
    The S1722DR8 GNSS dead-reckoning receiver, compared to a U.S. penny.

    The on-board barometric pressure sensor provides highly accuracy altitude information, useful for differentiating floor levels of multi-story parking garages or stacked highways.

    The S1722DR8 is compact, measuring 17 x 22 millimeters. It offers continuous navigation even in GPS-signal-denied environments such as tunnels or underground parking lot. Augmented by gyroscope and accelerometer sensor data, it is also designed for vehicle insurance accident-reconstruction applications.

    An S1722DR8 engineering sample, evaluation kit and datasheet are available now. Volume delivery to customers begins in June. The S1722DR8 is manufactured in ISO/TS 16949 automotive-certified factory.