Rokubun has launched JASON, a satellite navigation service for accurate geolocation. With JASON, users can achieve highly accurate geolocation without a base station, Rokubun said.
JASON works under a “freemium” pricing model, making it possible to use it for free or to subscribe to monthly professional or premium plans.
JASON is a post-processed kinematic (PPK) satellite positioning service in the cloud that allows users to achieve highly accurate geolocation by uploading GPS/GNSS campaign data. JASON will try to obtain the best possible positioning solution on a best-effort basis. It will use PPK with the nearest GNSS continuously operating reference station (CORS) in the service’s database or with he user’s own provided station if no close CORS are available, or precise point positioning. The data can be processed interactively by using the Rokubun website or automating the workflow via the Rokubun API.
JASON also features a free data-conversion service for GNSS raw measurements.The service is compatible with Argonaut, u-blox, Septentrio, Android GnssLogger and any receiver able to export industry standard RINEX v2 or v3 file formats.
According to Rokubun’s CEO Xavier Banqué-Casanovas, JASON cloud service allows users to get the best possible performance out of their GNSS equipment using an internet browser, without the need for special installation or updates requirements.
Aceinna and Point One Navigation launch hardware and software platform for precise positioning in agriculture, construction, mapping, surveying, robotics and trucking
The OpenARC positioning service is now commercially available. OpenARC is a precise-positioning hardware and software platform for system integration of GNSS corrections with high-performance inertial navigation system (INS) and real-time kinematic (RTK) hardware.
OpenARC is offered by Aceinna, a developer of inertial-based guidance and navigation systems, and powered by Point One Navigation.
With an RTK positioning engine and GNSS corrections delivered from a ground-based network of secure base stations, OpenARC will reliably improve position accuracy for autonomous vehicles to centimeter-level accuracy. The platform combines Point One’s Polaris GNSS correction service with Aceinna’s OpenRTK330 hardware and software solution for developers of autonomous systems in trucking, precision agriculture, construction, mapping, surveying and robotics.
OpenARC provides high-precision positioning and localization applications, enabling centimeter-level accuracy for challenging tasks such as lane keeping, precision agricultural guidance, and UAV landing maneuvers.
OpenARC is integrated into the OpenRTK330LI navigation module to provide a secure, vertically integrated and easy-to-use positioning platform. OpenARC is very scalable, supporting single-unit installations and high-volume deployments.
Point One’s proprietary Polaris GNSS cloud correction service delivers superior station density in areas where operators need it the most, including urban centers and suburban surrounding areas, enabling cold convergence times of under 10 seconds.
Polaris provides continuous position monitoring and tracks all modern satellite constellations. Its base-station technology includes advanced anti-jam, interference mitigation, security and integrity monitoring. Its architecture allows for GNSS corrections in RTK or state space representation (SSR) configuration. Its open-source interfaces are compatible with multiple receivers and chipsets, and the service is compatible with any NTRIP/RTCM3 compliant receiver.
“Seen & Heard” is a monthly feature of GPS World magazine, traveling the world to capture interesting and unusual news stories involving the GNSS/PNT industry.
Screenshot: PATS Indoor Drone Solutions video
Seeking out (tiny) aerial threats
Palm-sized drones are eliminating greenhouse pests in the Netherlands, reports the Associated Press. The drones seek out and destroy moths that produce crop-eating caterpillars. Tech startup PATS Indoor Drone Solutions uses drones as greenhouse sentinels. Cameras scan the airspace, and then steer the drones to fly into moths, destroying them in midair. The drone control system can distinguish between good and bad insects. The system is the brainchild of former students from the Delft University of Technology.
Photo: Skydio
Coming soon to a police department near you
Drone-maker Skydio claims to be shipping the most advanced artificial intelligence-powered drone ever built, reports Forbes. The Skydio X2 is scheduled to launch later this year. The quadcopter reportedly can latch onto targets and follow them, dodging all sorts of obstacles and capturing everything on high-quality video. It can fly in tight, tactical situations, such as inside buildings or through a forest. Skydio claims its software can even predict a target’s next move, whether pedestrian or vehicle. American-made, the Skydio is popular with police departments and is often used for defense.
The Loyal Wingman in its first test flight. (Photo: U.S. Air Force 88th Air Wing Public Affairs)
Fighter jets to get a sidekick
A military drone that will accompany fighter jets into combat flew its maiden voyage at the end of February. The Loyal Wingman, designed by Boeing Australia for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), uses artificial intelligence to target enemies. The Loyal Wingman is about the same size as the F-35 jet it will fly alongside. It has a range of 3,700 kilometers. The plane was flown from the ground control station at the Woomera Range Complex in the outback. The RAAF plans to buy three of the drones.
Photo: Zipline
COVID-19 vaccinations air-dropped in Ghana
Ghana has launched a nationwide program that uses Zipline drones to deliver coronavirus vaccines to rural communities. Deliveries began March 2 under the COVAX program of the World Health Organization (WHO), which aims to provide poorer countries with enough doses to cover 20% of their populations. Zipline has been delivering medical supplies (blood, personal protective equipment, vaccines) since 2016 using its patented, autonomous drones.
New modules enable users to develop high-precision solutions for heavy machinery, ground robotics, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
U-blox’s latest multi-band high-accuracy timing modules concurrently support L1 and L5 GNSS signals. The ZED-F9T-10B and LEA-F9T-10B timing modules, and the RCB-F9T-1 timing card, deliver nanosecond-level timing accuracies required to synchronize cellular network base stations and smart power grids. The ANN MB1 L1/L5 multi-band antenna completes the offering.
The multiband capability compensates for ionosphere error from all GNSS satellite constellations and reduces the timing error under clear skies to less than 5 ns without the need for an external GNSS correction service. To achieve maximum performance, the modules track signals from as many satellites as possible.
Image: u-blox
With satellite constellations transmitting signals on the L5 band nearing completion, the L1/L5 signal combination is becoming a viable option to complement products based on L1 and L2 signals. Modernized L5 signals are expected to deliver improved performance, especially in difficult urban conditions. Because L5 signals fall within the protected aeronautical radionavigation service (ARNS ) frequency band, they are also less subject to RF interference.
The LEA-F9T-10B provides a temperature range extended to –40 to +105° C. Both timing modules include a suite of advanced security features, including:
Improved anti-jamming and anti-spoofing technologies detect and flag malicious RF interference.
Secure boot ensures that the modules can only boot with authentic firmware.
Secure interfaces prevent intruders from tampering with the messages between the receiver and the host system.t
The ANN-MB1 L1/L5 multi-band antenna supports the GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou, and addresses the scarcity of options in the nascent L1/L5 high-precision antenna mass-market, simplifying testing and deployment of L1/L5 multi-band GNSS solutions. Magnetic and fixed mounting options help meet diverse installation needs.
The new products targets developers in industrial navigation and robotics interested in high-precision positioning technology to locate UAVs, ground robots and agricultural equipment accurately and in real time.
Engineering samples of the u-blox ZED-F9T-10B, RCB-F9T-1 and ANN-MB1 will be available in May, followed by the LEA-F9T.
Altitude Angel, a unified traffic management (UTM) technology provider, is bringing to market airspace management solution GuardianUTM Enterprise.
GuardianUTM Enterprise provides a view of the airspace in the vicinity of airports and enables airport to start designing and providing UTM services for drone companies and drone operators, using Altitude Angel’s proven digital authorization and flight-management technology.
GuardianUTM Enterprise will initially be deployed to support regional and local airports and airfields.
Europe’s EASA U-Space regulations are expected to become law on Jan. 1, 2023. GuardianUTM Enterprise is designed to enable airspace authorities to digitize approvals for drone operations using services integrated with Common Information Service (CIS) and U-Space Service Providers (USSP) architectures.
Using GuardianUTM Enterprise, airports can set access policies and create automation workflows accessible via Altitude Angel’s UTM ecosystem. This ecosystem is used by hundreds of thousands of drone pilots, manufacturers and software companies to guarantee the airport the best available view of the sky and nearby drone operations, ensuring a growing sector of the aviation market is able to access the new airport UTM Service.
For larger airports with counter-UAS solutions, data from on-site surveillance systems can be optionally integrated to give airport security staff greater situation intelligence which is a critical step in encouraging greater drone use.
The solution can be rapidly deployed and configured for airports of any size; providing a flexible platform for enabling drones to be safely integrated in the airspace around these facilities: a crucial step in unlocking a wide variety of unique use-cases for drones.
GuardianUTM Enterprise provides digitalization of pre-flight and take-off approvals to drone operators within airspace. It offers high levels of automation, including customized automated access policies and approval workflows of unmanned operations.
Dual-frequency timing module provides anti-jamming and anti-spoofing capabilities
Photo: Trimble
Trimble has introduced its first dual-frequency embedded timing module that provides next-generation networks with 5-nanosecond accuracy.
Surface mountable, the Trimble RES 720 GNSS timing module can be integrated into network equipment. It uses L1 and L5 GNSS signals to provide superior protection to jamming and spoofing, mitigates multipath in harsh environments, and adds security features to make it suitable for resilient networks.
Precise timing and synchronization optimizes and improves wireless network performance. At 19 x 19 millimeters, the RES 720 module provides a low-cost, easy-to-use, highly accurate and reliable GPS timing source for critical infrastructure in a broad range of industries. The RES 720 is suitable for 5G Open RAN/XHaul, smart grids, data centers, industrial automation and satellite communication networks, as well as calibration services and perimeter monitoring applications.
The RES 720 meets the resilient timing requirement mandated by the U.S. 2020 Executive Order (EO13095) for timing services and critical infrastructure operators. Using dual-frequency (L1 and L5), RES 720 provides better multipath detection capabilities than single frequency, and provides protection against signal jamming and spoofing. Multi-band capability helps compensate for the ionospheric error from multi-GNSS satellite constellations, while reducing the timing error under clear skies to less than 5 nanoseconds. To further improve its accuracy locally, the RES 720 module features differential timing modes for highly accurate local timing.
Powered by Trimble’s Smart GNSS Assurance technology, the RES 720 offers protection against jamming and hacking of signals with automatic fallback to available GNSS signals. Infrastructure equipment suppliers, system integrators and network operators can benefit by integrating highly accurate synchronization capabilities into their network and synchro-phasor devices, while enabling resilient timing for critical infrastructure.
The RES 720 is expected to be available in the second quarter of 2021.
On Feb. 25, the Galileo Service Operator (GSOp) received from EUSST a collision risk alert between GSAT0219 and an inert Ariane 4 upper stage launched in 1989. Following the warning, GSOp closely monitored the risk, in close cooperation with EUSST that was refining its predictions.
In line with operational procedures, GSOp informed the GSA of the situation. In a joint effort with the European Commission, the GSA managed the follow-up activities. The effective cooperation between EUSST and the GSA/GSOp was instrumental to the success of the mission and bears testimony to the need for efficient cooperation between different organizations in the space sector.
Maneuver Authorized
Following refinement of the Ariane 4 orbit, the risk of collision was still unacceptably high. After assessment of different strategies and associated risks on the service provision, the GSA authorized the execution of an avoidance maneuver.
The satellite was taken out of service on March 5, and users were informed via NAGU #2021009. The collision avoidance maneuver was performed shortly thereafter, by temporarily relocating the satellite away from its nominal position.
Satellite GSAT0219 was reintroduced into service on March 19 after the completion of two station-keeping maneuvers to reposition it into its nominal operational orbit. A second NAGU advised users that the satellite was once again available.
Map of sensors contributing to the event. (Image: EUSST)
Murata has developed a new (micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) six-degrees-of-freedom (6DoF) inertial sensor for GNSS positioning support, autonomous off-highway vehicles and dynamic inclination sensing. Murata’s new SCHA63T sensor is a single package 6DoF component. It can enable centimeter-level accuracy in machine dynamics and position sensing, and can assist in ensuring safe, robust and verified designs.
The sensor enables further advancement in technology and novel solutions for GNSS-based measurement instruments, advanced driver/operator assistance systems, and autonomous vehicles.
The product delivers highest performance available on the component level in the key parameters of bias stability and noise. Murata calibrates orthogonality of all measurement axes, which allows customers and system integrators to skip that critical process step.
A key focus area in product development for SCHA63T has been to ensure operation during high mechanical shock and vibration. Within the same product family, sensor variants are qualified according to the automotive AEC-Q100 standard. The SHCA63T sensor includes advanced self-diagnostic features and can achieve full compliance with ASIL-D (Automotive Safety Integrity Level-D).
The SCHA63T sensor features extensive failsafe functions and error bits for diagnostics. These include internal reference signal monitoring, checksum techniques for verifying communication, and signal saturation/over range detection.
The diagnostic feature of Murata’s three-axis accelerometer is the continuously operating self-test function, which monitors the sensor during measurement. This patented self-test function verifies the proper operation of the entire signal chain, from MEMS sensor element movement to signal conditioning circuitry for every measurement cycle. Even if the system using SCHA63T is not required to follow international functional safety standards, the provided design support documentation enables for customers a cost effective, robust and fast design process.
Murata, based in Japan, has more than 20 years of experience of providing inertial sensors for safety-critical automotive applications like electronic stability control.
Oxford Technical Solutions has released the xNAV650, the latest in its line of inertial navigation systems (INS), suitable for use on drones.
INS provide surveyors with absolute position, timing and inertial measurements (heading and pitch/roll) that they can integrate into their survey projects. The measurements, when combined with data from other devices (such as lidar sensors and cameras), can greatly enhance the surveying process, leading to a greater return on investment, according to the company.
The xNAV650 is OxTS’ smallest, lightest and most affordable INS to date. It combines 20 years of navigation experience with the latest micro-electromechanical (MEMS) inertial measurement unit (IMU) technology and survey-grade GNSS receivers.
UAV Guidance
The xNAV650 provides highly accurate and reliable measurements – even when payload size and weight are imperative to consider, including for use with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). It measures 77 x 63 x 24 mm and weighs 130 grams.
The xNAV650 INS is suitable for a wide range of UAV data-collection applications, including surveys of bridges, buildings, forests and rail; coastal monitoring; map creation and pipeline exploration.
OxTS’ partner Dronezone used the xNAV650 INS and a Velodyne VLP-16 lidar on a drone to conduct a scan of an aging bridge to look for structural and potential hazards from overgrown foliage.
By fusing the timing, position and inertial data from the INS with the raw data of the Velodyne VLP-16 (using OxTS’ lidar georeferencing software OxTS Georeferencer), the surveyor was able to produce a highly accurate 3D point cloud of the bridge. Fusing the position and inertial data from the xNAV650 INS with the Velodyne VLP-16 lidar data provides a high level of clarit, which can be seen in the foliage, electricity lines and side of the bridge.
The resulting point cloud has enabled the engineers to easily and accurately pinpoint areas of the bridge that need closer attention.
Side view point cloud of bridge. Data collected using and OxTS xNAV650 INS and Velodyne VLP-16 lidar. Data processed using OxTS Georeferencer. (Image: OxTS)
NAVsuite Software
Data from OxTS INS can be fused with the data from almost any lidar sensor. Using OxTS Georeferencer software, point clouds can be georeferences from lidar units specifically from Velodyne, Hesai and Ouster sensors. Work is underway to integrate new lidar sensors from an even wider range of manufacturers into OxTS Georeferencer – allowing OxTS INS users to build a full navigation solution where much of the integration work is already taken care of.
OxTS NAVsuite software is included with all OxTS INS. The full range of software tools allows users of OxTS’ devices to configure and post-process data with ease.
Other optional software features are also available, including Precision Time Protocol (PTP) and GX/IX tight-coupling technology. PTP allows for a much simpler lidar survey set-up over ethernet while simultaneously stamping out time-drift by utilizing the high-quality INS clock source – GNSS. GX/IX tight-coupling technology, OxTS’ own proprietary navigation engine, ensures that users of OxTS Inertial Navigation Systems receive the most accurate measurements possible even in tough GNSS conditions.
Mapping company ProStar Holdings Inc. and survey device company Bad Elf have partnered to produce a solution designed to gather the precise location of surface and subsurface utility data.
PointMan combined with Bad Elf is designed to quickly and precisely, locate, identify and display critical surface and subsurface utility data.
Bad Elf’s survey-grade GPS/GNSS receiver combined with ProStar’s flagship mobile-mapping solution, PointMan, now provides a powerful and user friendly solution for any industry requiring precision mapping including subsurface utility engineering (SUE) and utility locating professionals.
“The Bad Elf Flex was quickly configured by ProStar and performed flawlessly with the PointMan app. We found that consistent high accuracy was easy to maintain while collecting data,” said Larry Fox, vice president of marketing and business development at Bad Elf. “The depth of collection tools and export facilities exceeded our expectations. Given the seamless integration with Bad Elf Flex, PointMan demonstrated it’s a top-tier app for utility management, and expands our ability to provide best in class solutions to our users worldwide.”
“Equipment manufacturers like Bad Elf and their distribution networks are an important component of our sales and marketing strategy,” said Page Tucker, CEO and founder of ProStar. “Our goal is to continue to work with leading equipment manufacturers around the world to provide the most comprehensive, modern, and low-cost data collection solutions.”
ProStar’s flagship product, PointMan, is natively cloud and mobile, offered as a Software as a Solution (SaaS). ProStar’s solutions are being adopted by some of the largest entities in North America, including Fortune 500 construction firms, the largest subsurface utilities engineering (SUE) firms, and government agencies.
ProStar’s strategic partnerships are with geospatial technology and data-collection equipment manufactures and their dealer networks, including Trimble, Juniper Systems, Vivax-Metrotech, Radiodetection, Bad Elf and Subsite Electronics.
Advanced Navigation, in partnership with quantum technology company Q+CTRL, will create a quantum-enhanced inertial navigation solution for space launch vehicles, satellites and landers. The design of this inertial navigation technology for long-endurance space missions will be pivotal to NASA’s space exploration initiative, the Artemis Lunar Exploration Program.
The work will be done under a Moon to Mars Supply Chain Capability Improvement grant by the Australian federal government.
The quantum-enhanced navigation system will enable NASA and its partners in the international space exploration community to execute deep space, lunar and planetary missions that were previously not possible.
Artemis is NASA’s human lunar exploration plan, with the program aiming to send the first woman and next man to the surface of the Moon by 2024. Scientists have long acknowledged the Moon as a rich source of information regarding Earth and the Solar System. Using the findings from the Moon. NASA will then prepare to launch missions to Mars.
To meet NASA’s space exploration initiatives, high-end, highly accurate inertial navigation technology is vital to the mission’s success. The groundbreaking inertial navigation systems developed by Advanced Navigation have been recognised by the international aerospace community as a superior technology to help pioneer a new age of space exploration and discovery for humanity.
For Advanced Navigation, this is just the beginning. “In the long-term view of this critical initiative, team activities following this project will establish an ongoing manufacturing opportunity and capacity that is central to the emerging Australian space industry,” said Chris Shaw, co-CEO of Advanced Navigation.
Advanced Navigation was founded in Sydney in 2012 by engineers Xavier Orr and Chris Shaw to commercialize thesis research into AI neural network-based inertial navigation. The first product met the market with great success and the company expanded rapidly adding a portfolio of navigation offerings and moving into a diverse range of deep tech fields such as underwater acoustics, GPS, radio frequency systems, sensors and robotics.
Today Advanced Navigation is a supplier to companies including Airbus, Boeing, Tesla, Google, Apple and General Motors. Advanced Navigation is headquartered in Sydney with a large research facility in Perth and sales offices around the world.
On March 20, a South Korean Earth Observation satellite will be sent to space, carrying a navigation receiver from RUAG Space to determine the satellite’s position in orbit. The Earth Observation satellite is being launched by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), South Korea’s space agency.
The precision single-frequency low Earth orbit GNSS receiver, called LEORIX, is a GPS + Galileo receiver from RUAG Space’s new generation of receivers.
More than 80 RUAG Space receivers of the latest generation (LEORIX for Low Earth Orbit, GEORIX Geostationary Orbit and PODRIX) have been ordered by customers in Asia, Europe, Middle East and the United States. They will be launched for various low and geostationary Earth Orbit missions within the next few months and years.
Currently, 22 navigation receivers from RUAG Space are in orbit. The satellite CAS-500-1 will be launched aboard a Russian Soyuz-2 launch vehicle from the spaceport in Baikonur, Kazakhstan.
After the launch of CAS-500-1, South Korea plans to send the CAS500-2 satellite to space. A launch date of this second mission is not yet defined. The CAS500-2 mission also will fly with a LEORIX receiver from RUAG Space. The satellite builder — Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) — already has received the space-borne navigation receiver.
PODRIX in Space
Since November 2020, two new Precise Orbit Determination Receivers (PODRIX) from RUAG Space have been in orbit. They determine the position of ocean-monitoring satellite Sentinel-6.
The PODRIX GNSS spaceborne receiver achieves a very high, real-time in-orbit accuracy of the satellite’s position in orbit from below one meter to a few centimeters using on-ground post-processing. The high accuracy is achieved through simultaneously processing of multi-frequency signals from GPS and Galileo.
PODRIX GNSS spaceborne receivers are built on the experience of the more than 20 GPS-only receivers of the RUAG Space legacy receiver generation now in orbit.
The receivers precisely determine the position of a satellite once in orbit, which improves the satellite’s performance. Sentinel-6 measures the sea level on a global scale with unprecedented accuracy, which is crucial for climate change research. Every millimeter or centimeter in further precision highly improves the performance of the mission. The more precise the Sentinel-6 spaceborne GNSS receiver from RUAG Space works, the more precise are the data of this climate mission.
RUAG Space is a supplier to the space industry in Europe, and has a growing presence in the United States. It develops and manufactures products for satellites and launch vehicles, playing a key role both in the institutional and commercial space market. RUAG Space is part of RUAG International, a Swiss technology group focusing on the aerospace industry.
