Trimble has announced that the Trimble GCSFlex Grade Control System for Excavators now offers highly accurate GPS machine guidance via Wi-Fi. By serving GPS corrections over a Wi-Fi connection from a local base station, Trimble has eliminated the need for a radio network on the construction site and made it easier than ever to deploy GPS for a broad range of excavation work, the company said.
Trimble introduced GCSFlex Grade Control System for Excavators in 2011 as an affordable, easy-to-use machine control system for owner operators and small to mid-sized contractors who want to increase their productivity and competitiveness. With several system configuration options available, contractors can select the sensor options that fit their job site needs at a price point that fits their budget.
The new configuration of GCSFlex is deployed with the innovative Trimble SPS985 GNSS Smart Antenna as a local base station for transmitting GPS corrections to the excavator. The operator needs only to position the Trimble SPS985 base station and power it on to automatically establish a Wi-Fi connection and begin broadcasting corrections to the machine. With simplified daily setup and operation, Trimble has made the highly powerful GCSFlex system easy to deploy and use, even for excavator operators with little or no experience with machine control.
GCSFlex with GPS Guidance also offers the benefit of using in-field design templates created directly from the cab on the Trimble CB450 Control Box. This allows the excavator operator to very accurately dig to a desired depth, slope or alignment without creating a digital design in the office.
Trimble announced a new UHF RFID Reader accessory for its Nomad rugged handheld computer.
The Trimble ThingMagic Reader supports reading and writing of EPC Global Gen2 tags which are commonly used for asset and inventory management. The UHF RFID Reader accessory is designed to withstand drops, vibration, humidity, extreme temperatures and immersion, making it ideal for challenging environments.
"The Nomad has been a very successful rugged mobile platform, supplying field workers with a robust tool for data capture and navigation," said Jim Sheldon, general manager of Trimble's Mobile Computing Solutions Division. "The RFID Reader further extends the Nomad's capabilities and offers enterprise management more options in its use."
"Similar to the widespread integration of GPS into today's positioning solutions, we believe RFID is a natural complement to many asset management applications and Trimble solutions," said Tom Grant, general manager of Trimble's ThingMagic Division. "Integrating high-performance RFID technology into high-value products like the Nomad delivers a strong platform for next generation productivity applications."
The UHF RFID Reader is available in two variations: one for use in Europe, and the other for use in the U.S., Canada and most of South America. The Reader is based on the best-in-class ThingMagic M5e Compact UHF RFID module, and includes device drivers and a Software Development Kit to enable systems integrators to add RFID capabilities to their mobile applications.
While the FAA is moving ahead with plans for UAS/UAV to have regular access to U.S. airspace by 2015, a number of barriers remain. For UAVs to be treated like manned aircraft, their systems likely need to be qualified to the same standards as civil avioncs — this is a challenge, as each UAS has largely unique systems. UAS equipment standards are emerging, but threats to GNSS abound and defense/mitigation is required. The coming AUVSI convention in Las Vegas in August may provide some answers.
Today’s demand for a wide range of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) has resulted in a lots of different types flying today in many applications. With no apparent standard avionics fit or uniform safety standards, each UAS type is basically configured for specific tasks. As commercial applications for UAS emerge, major market growth is anticipated. One forecast indicates that the UAS market could reach $7.26 billion this year alone. The promise of new and better ways to reduce costs, improve safety, and for more efficient operations is feeding a real market expansion.
However, in the U.S. the FAA currently requires each UAS commercial project desiring access to controlled airspace to obtain an FAA-approved Certificate of Authorization (CoA). While the FAA has made efforts to speed up approvals, this process has put a damper on widespread commercial adoption of UAS. Nevertheless, opportunities abound in pipeline and transmission line inspection, crop spraying, expanded law enforcement/security, and hundreds of other applications. The FAA may have felt some pressure to move forward, because Congress has put in place the Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, which calls on the FAA to fully integrate unmanned systems, including those for commercial use, into the national airspace by September 2015.
Cadence Technologies SR-20.
Meanwhile, a project called the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration in the National Airspace System (or UAS in the NAS) undertaken by NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, California, seeks to reduce technical barriers related to safety and operational challenges associated with enabling routine UAS access to the NAS.
Civil aircraft and UAS may co-exist after September 2015.NASA Predator test vehicle.
Europe is also undertaking a study on the integration of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in non-segregated airspace for the future “Single European Sky”. The study, known as ICONUS (Initial CON OPS for UAS in SESAR), will be carried out by a consortium within the European air traffic management program called SESAR. The group is led by France’s ONERA, and includes AVTECH (Sweden), CIRA and Deep Blue (Italy), ENAC (France), and INTA (Spain) — all have significant experience with UAS. The study will allow the definition of the requirements, capabilities, and the equipment that UAS will need to operate safely and efficiently in the coming European SESAR environment.
In the U.S., the RTCA SC-203 committee is busy drafting UAS operational requirements, and there has been significant progress towards ultimately publishing Minimum Aviation Performance Standards (MASPS), including requirements for navigation. Europe also has similar activities under way aimed at improving UAS access to their airspace.
The big picture is that requirements for unmanned aircraft are being brought into conformance with the standards applied to the performance and behavior of manned aircraft. Navigation requirements for UAS are expected to specify that systems will need to be qualified to Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS). This means that on-board electronics, including GNSS systems, will probably need to be FAA TSO qualified, just as they are now for manned aircraft.
But why do we need to investigate certified avionics now? In the scheme of things, +2 years of breathing space to certify UAS avionics systems is not long before the September 2015 deadline. FAA airborne software and hardware qualification will take mucho time and effort to implement, and reconfiguration of systems, interfaces, and operating procedures may take even longer.
UAS manufacturers have the option to move forward in stages — for instance, by selecting a few existing airborne qualified OEM avionics, they could minimize the internal effort to comply. And as the first UAS with certified avionics emerge, they will probbaly get good support from FAA to adopt the rules of operating in the U.S. NAS. Embedding an existing certified GPS receiver in UAS avionics will reduce the level of internal work needed and will allow more effort for developing commercial market opportunities which are looking to quickly adopt UAS.
And while this is going on, efforts are in full swing to change the navigation landscape in the U.S. and Europe over the next few years. So it would be better to be ready with a capable GNSS receiver that is already built to meet the challenges of the FAA NextGen and SESAR environments.
The L5 civil GPS frequency may likely be operational around the time that UAS unrestricted access becomes possible. GPS L1/L5 dual-frequency operations will enable higher navigation accuracy, reliablity, and integrity. The FAA is already developing NexGen WAAS to include L5, and revisions to the GPS MOPS to include L5 are anticipated to begin shortly, in time for a usable GPS L5 constellation in 2015/2016.
The FAA is already preparing for L5 avionics, and industry investigative work is under way. It’s possible that GPS L1/L5 may well meet the accuracy and integrity requirements for CAT II/III automated landings. And in Europe, Eurocae work is expected to gain momentum for the Galileo E1/E5a MOPS as the Galileo satellite navigation system is launched and becomes operational.
The new GNSS environment also includes WAAS/SBAS precision approach (LPV) capability — LPV is available now in the US and will soon be in wider operation in Europe. And Automatic Dependendant Surveillance (ADS-B) is being rolled out in the U.S. and around the world. ADS-B is being mandated within the U.S. NAS as the means for air traffic control to track all aircraft, so UAS avionics will need to include certified ADS-B Out capability.
The Septentrio AiRx2 receiver comes out of the box as a certified L1 GPS with ADS-B and WAAS LVP, but is also ready for GPS L5 and Galileo E1/E5a.
Photo: Septentrio
And yet, even as greater steps forward are being taken to enhance how GNSS is used in this wider definition of aviation, which will soon include UAS, a team at the University of Texas was busy demonstrating how a UAV could be maliciously side-tracked (see article in the August issue of GPS World). Their recent tests at White Sands Missile Range used a spoofing set-up built in their lab to significantly affect the trajectory of a Hornet Mini UAV. Admittedly, the GPS on this vehicle was not a qualified airborne receiver, but there were other sensors on board the vehicle which may have been able to indicate that the GPS had been hijacked. The spoofing set-up used a high-power directional signal to overwhelm the real GPS signals and “distract” the GPS on-board receiver. Nevertheless, they were able to force the hovering UAV down towards the ground — somewhat reminiscent of the Iranian downing of a U.S. surveillance drone in December last year.
How could this happen when there was also an inertial sensor and a radio-altimeter on the UAV? A good question, which UAV manufacturers will need to consider when they implement their on-board Kalman filters, knowing that spoofing is now an additional threat to combat. But, couldn’t we detect that high-power RF spoofing signal at the front-end of the GPS receiver? Even if only to tell the on-board systems that there could be Hazardous Misleading Information (HMI) about? Or run separate GPS and GPS/inertial position solutions, detect significant divergence, and set the same warning flag? And multi-constellation, multi-frequency receivers, and even controlled radiation pattern antennas — all things to investigate, and even more effort for the aviation receiver guys who are always working tirelessly to improve the integrity of GNSS positioning.
Of course, if you hijack a UAV with a high-power spoofer, you are also spoofing civil transports operating in the same airspace — so now there is the potential to trigger a federal investigation. And it will probably be easier to detect this stuff with moving airborne sensors rather than the fixed ground equipment used to find jammers on trucks at Newark Airport, and lots of pilots likely providing real-time location information on radios if their GPS goes even a little haywire — all would help to quickly locate and shut down any spoofer. Nevertheless, it’s a threat to be mitigated.
In South Korea, the effects of intermittent North Korean jamming of GPS to disrupt navigation at sea, on land, and in the air in the south may have contributed to the recent fatal crash of a Schiebel Camcopter S-100 drone — a 150-kilogram rotorcraft capable of 220 km/h flight, which should have coped with loss of GPS as the Camcopter has multiple inertial measurement units that “allow safe operation and recovery in the absence of GPS signals.”
Schiebel Camcopter S-100.
Schiebel, however, has indicated that information recovered to date indicates that after the loss of GPS signals to the aircraft’s receivers, there may have been incorrect handling and operator errors which resulted in an unfortunate chain of events that ultimately led to the crash.
Emergency procedures “to ensure a safe recovery in such a situation” do not appear to have been “correctly and adequately followed,” Schiebel alleges.
NovAtel may have found one way to help mitigate spoofing on UAVs — they just released a combined civil/SAASM GPS receiver, the OEM625S, aimed specifically at UAVs. Granted, the idea is to add SAASM anti-spoofing capability to a number of UAVs which currently use NovAtel commercial receivers — mostly in military systems. And of course that may well be motivated by the desire to avoid any further Iranian incidents!
BAE Systems has obviously been thinking of giving GPS a back-up for just those situations where jamming or even spoofing is detected. BAE’s system was just announced at the Farnborough Air Show in the UK and is still in the research phase, but looks extremely promising. Known as Navigation via Signals of Opportunity (NAVSOP), it interrogates the radio environment for the ID and signal strength of local digital TV and radio signals, plus air traffic control radars, with finer-grained adjustments coming from cellphone masts and Wi-Fi routers. Mapping the locations of all these sources might be quite an undertaking, and given that these are all non-safety-of-life commercial signals, the sources are subject to the vagaries of power outages, regular maintenance, and breakdowns. Nevertheless, with such a multitude of signals, NAVSOP could well turn out to be a viable back-up for GNSS.
Meanwhile, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) big show is set to run August 6-9 in Las Vegas. With more than 500 exhibitors, attendance is expected to be more than 8,000 people from all over the world. All the key manufacturers, suppliers, and users of UAS are expected to be there, so it’s a great opportunity to meet people working with UAS and see some of the hardware and systems. Hopefully we will be able to get a feel for how the industry sees the onset of commercial market opportunities and the changes this may mean to systems and vehicles. It will be my first time walking round all these exhibits and seeing the live demos, so I’m very excited to be able to find out even a little about what makes this industry tick! More on this later…
So, shared access to civil airspace, wider applications in commercial operations, and changes in equipment qualification — along with potential solutions for GNSS jamming and spoofing — lots to consider for the UAS industry.
Hemisphere GPS, a leading innovator and manufacturer of advanced GNSS products, continues to expand its intellectual property portfolio with newly awarded patents. These patents represent the latest advancements in adaptive machine control and GNSS solutions, the company said.
The Adaptive Machine Control System and Method patent describes the sophisticated adaptive control methods used to guide vehicles and provide accurate and efficient coverage. The system is comprised of a machine controller, GNSS guidance system, and software and is most commonly used in precision farming. From pre-planned guidance patterns the system provides the ideal pattern adjustments for guidance and automated steering taking into account a variety of conditions and user inputs including path, boundary or terrain irregularities, and minimum turning radius. In addition, the system provides optimal, automated turns and spray nozzle control. As a result, farmers complete their fieldwork with greater accuracy and efficiency as well as improve their yields and reduce their input expenses. The patent supports current products and new developments within Hemisphere GPS’ precision farming product line including Outback Guidance branded products.
Hemisphere GPS was awarded seven other patents in 2012 that include advanced GNSS solutions for antenna design, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), multiple antenna control system, tracking of fixed and slow-moving structures, augmentation of differential corrections, antenna alignment and monitoring system, and vehicle guidance control.
"Hemisphere GPS’ commitment to innovation has generated over 75 pending and issued patents,” said Mike Whitehead, chief scientist at Hemisphere GPS. "Through these inventions and sophisticated new technology, we continuously enhance capability and performance of our positioning, guidance, and machine control solutions in the marketplace.”
Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS), announces the release of a new mobile GIS field software – eGIS.
According to the announcement, eGIS is compatible with Topcon’s FC-25, FC-236, Tesla and GRS-1 controllers, and makes all accuracy capabilities from autonomous measurements to RTK centimeter level accuracy easy to achieve. The new software makes it easy to collect and maintain databases for a variety of uses – electric utilities, gas pipelines, disaster management, water and wastewater operations, forestry, highway maintenance, environmental studies, as well as other mapping projects.
Jason Hooten, TPS national sales manager for GIS products, said, “As applications for GIS data collection continue to expand, we are pleased to offer an easy-to-use field software solution. The customization and graphical interface aspects of this software make it very simple to collect, view, download and export GIS data.”
Key features of eGIS include:
• ESRI compatible (Native Shapefile format);
• Fully integrated GRS-1 GNSS functions;
• Capture, edit, analyze and display geographic information;
DeLorme today announced at the Esri Users Conference the introduction of ArcSync, a software engine that allows customers to transfer field data edits to Esri repositories and synchronize field databases with the internal GIS database.
ArcSync automates the process of defining and scheduling tasks, providing automatic data flow and keeping field and office databases in sync.
“The ArcSync engine is an automated tool that streamlines the synchronization between field data collection and the ArcGIS database at headquarters,” said John Auble, DeLorme vice president, data products and HA/DR programs. “It is the ideal solution for organizations with a need to collect and distribute GIS data to field personnel in a disconnected format. It creates disconnected GIS layers from ArcGIS feature classes and maintains synchronization as changes are made via DeLorme, ArcMap, or other Esri tools.”
Auble noted that ArcSync permits the GIS Admin to ensure data viewed in the field is current for both the connected and disconnected GIS user, pushing work tickets to field personnel in an automated fashion so that critical data can be collected in a timely manner. It also allows for a scheduled automated process to run in order to make sure that all databases are in sync, eliminating the need for GIS Admin to spend time processing files manually to keep the field database and internal GIS database synchronized.
DeLorme is showcasing its full range of mapping, positioning and tracking solutions in Booth 2407 at the 2012 Esri Users Conference this week in San Diego.
Altus Positioning Systems has made three announcements at the Esri 2012 Users Conference in San Diego this week. The company introduced a new GPS-based data-acquisition system for the GIS industry, introduced a portable integrated system for GIS applications, and announced the commercial availability of a GNSS receiver.
New GIS system. Altus introduced a new GPS-based data-acquisition system for the GIS industry. The new system from Altus includes an ikeGPS multi-sensor data-acquisition system and a variety of built-in software tools for specific data-collection projects.
The ikeGPS product combines a GPS receiver, laser rangefinder, 3D compass and digital camera in a single ruggedized handheld device, providing a fully integrated low-cost solution for capturing geospatial data and 3D GIS imagery. The versatile system permits the user to geolocate objects quickly and easily from a single location with the laser rangefinder and compass, using the recorder’s GPS coordinates as a reference. The digital camera provides a visual reference for each object captured into the database, and the system can even calculate position coordinates for target items directly from the photographs.
“The ikeGPS multi-sensor platform enables the capturing of GIS data in situations that would be otherwise impossible using traditional GIS equipment,” said Neil Vancans, CEO and president of Altus Positioning Systems. “The ikeGPS mobile GIS solutions provide unique improvements on conventional GIS data-collection efficiency. It also enables the user to capture accurate measurements of remote objects — for instance, across a busy highway, barbed-wire fence, or stream — from safe distances with its point-and-shoot capability, producing verifiable, geo-referenced data collection.”
Vancans noted that for applications requiring higher-precision positioning, the ikeGPS device can be interfaced with Altus’ APS-3 GNSS RTK survey-grade receivers for centimeter-level accuracies.
Portable Integrated System for GIS Applications. Altus also introduced the new ProCyon, which integrates the flexible, rugged Psion Workabout Pro handheld computer with Altus’ APS-3 RTK GNSS receiver for a powerful GIS data-acquisition platform, the company said.
The ProCyon system delivers one-centimeter RTK accuracy using an external antenna, integrated camera, and quad-band GSM modem. Additionally, the ProCyon has hardware expansion slots, making the addition of new modules fast and easy, as well as a range of available add-ons, including fingerprint scanners and the largest selection of RFID readers on any handheld device, Altus said.
The ProCyon Windows Mobile operating system accommodates ESRI ArcPad and ArcGIS applications. Both programs use NMEA messages that are standard outputs from the integrated GNSS receiver in the ProCyon.
“The ProCyon is built on the industry-standard platform of the Psion Workabout, one of the world’s top-selling Windows Mobile devices,” said Neil Vancans, CEO and president, Altus Positioning Systems. “The ProCyon is an answer to the needs of many utilities already using Psion products.”
Commercial Availability of GNSS Receiver. Altus Positioning Systems also announced the commercial availability of its new APS-U GNSS receiver. For maximum flexibility, the APS-U is scalable from a single stand-alone GNSS receiver to full options with heading, wireless links, precise point positioning, and RTK capability. The unit has an additional processor for on-board configuration and custom applications separate from the GNSS engine. It has an extensive suite of interfaces for data output, timing, event marks and a second antenna port for GNSS heading.
“The APS-U provides multi-frequency capability together with GNSS heading, L-Band positioning and wireless communications, all within a hardened housing that meets military environmental specifications,” said Neil Vancans, CEO and president, Altus Positioning Systems. “With its wide range of interfaces and 9-30V power input options, the APS-U is an ideal GNSS solution for GIS data collection as well as machine control, agriculture, aerial photogrammetry, heading sensors and military applications. It can also be used in a variety of different formats, without heading information, in a robust receiver or base station configuration.”
The 136-channel receiver is designed to use all GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo frequencies. Integrated wireless options include Bluetooth for easy configuration, plus a GSM or CDMA cellular modem and UHF radio modem for transmission and reception of RTK corrections. It also works with WAAS, EGNOS, and other satellite-based augmentation systems.
The rugged new APS-U units incorporate Septentrio GNSS receiver engines, and meet MIL-STD-810G specifications for humidity, dust, shock, and vibration, and operates under temperatures from 30 to minus 65 degrees Celsius.
Now GNSS smartphone application developers can benefit from a range of new features from Version 2 the European Commission’s free EGNOS Software Development Kit (SDK), reports the European GNSS Agency (GSA). The SDK helps developers to easily implement EGNOS corrections coming from the signal in space or the Internet, and make use of EGNOS advantages when using location-enabled applications.
The EGNOS SDK is a European Commission project that aims to foster the use of EGNOS in location-based services (LBS) applications for smartphones. It has been designed to allow application developers to take advantage of the benefits of EGNOS, and to use these in software they develop for mobile devices. The EGNOS SDK is the only toolkit — in an open-source library — that implements integrity and EGNOS corrections for a more accurate position than GPS alone can provide.
New EGNOS SDK features and improvements include:
Tracking feature: Allows application developers to choose different options to display their GPS and/or EGNOS and/or R&D position over the smartphone’s map.
Skyplot view: Enables to display the position of the overhead EGNOS and GPS satellites with a time span of +12h or -12h. This feature shows information about the number of EGNOS satellites available, the number of GPS satellites used for the computation of the R&D, EGNOS and GPS positions, and the number of satellites not used.
Advanced Skyplot view: Provides an augmented reality showing a live video streaming of the sky and can identify EGNOS and GPS satellites in real time.
R&D Position Type menu: Displays six features proposing innovative ways of computing a position by deviating from the EGNOS standard EGNOS DO-229D, to get even greater accuracy:
The Increased satellite constellation improving the satellite constellation used by adding GPS satellites not monitored by EGNOS.
The Best satellite constellation selecting the most suitable GPS satellites geometry for the computation of the position.
The 2D Positioning displaying the position even if only 3 GPS satellites are in view (4 satellites are normally the minimum needed to compute a position). This is important in urban situations, where surrounding buildings can obstruct a clear view of the sky, making it difficult to track four satellites or more.
The Fast correction with no RRC improving the positioning by eliminating the jumps that the Range Rate Correction (RRC) might cause in the fast corrections applied to the pseudorange (PR) measurements.
The Best Weight Matrix rating the satellites involved in the position computation on the basis of the most beneficial weight matrix.
The SBAS ranging function enabling SBAS geostationary satellites to be used in the same way GPS satellites are used to compute a position
As far as integrity is concerned, the user can define different levels of integrity to be displayed (Horizontal Protection Level (HPL)): aviation, maritime or 85 percent.
Since its initial release in November 2011, the EGNOS SDK is providing a useful tool to application developers who need the additional accuracy provided by EGNOS accessible in smartphone applications, according to customers:
“I am interested in the toolkit because I started a project that aims at developing an application based on smartphones” – GeoMatica
“I found the toolkit interesting, especially SISNet, in Finland the EGNOS signal is low…the corrections I receive with SISNet are more reliable than those I could receive with the satellite” – VTT
DeLorme announced the introduction of ArcSync, a software engine that allows customers to transfer field data edits to Esri repositories and synchronize field databases with the internal GIS database.
ArcSync automates the process of defining and scheduling tasks, providing automatic data flow and keeping field and office databases in sync.
“The ArcSync engine is an automated tool that streamlines the synchronization between field data collection and the ArcGIS database at headquarters,” said John Auble, DeLorme vice president, data products and HA/DR programs. “It is the ideal solution for organizations with a
need to collect and distribute GIS data to field personnel in a disconnected format. It creates disconnected GIS layers from ArcGIS feature classes and maintains synchronization as changes are made via DeLorme, ArcMap or other Esri tools.”
Auble noted that ArcSync permits the GIS Admin to ensure data viewed in the field is current for both the connected and disconnected GIS user, pushing work tickets to field personnel in an automated fashion so that critical data can be collected in a timely manner. It also allows for a scheduled automated process to run in order to make sure that all databases are in sync, eliminating the need for GIS Admin to spend time processing files manually to keep the field database and internal GIS database synchronized.
Esri released Esri Maps for Office, a new analysis tool that allows business professionals to visualize data by creating and sharing interactive maps directly within Microsoft Office. Esri Maps for Office is a downloadable add-in for Microsoft Office 2010 that helps organizations make better decisions through location analytics.
"By bringing the power of location analytics to Microsoft Office, Esri Maps for Office extends mapping and geographic intelligence capabilities to new people and departments," said Jack Dangermond, Esri president. "Esri Maps for Office is the next necessary step to offering more robust business analytics throughout an organization."
With Esri Maps for Office, business professionals can quickly create interactive maps from their data in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. These live maps, which can be based on any geographic component, such as customer locations or sales by ZIP Code, can be simply added to Microsoft PowerPoint presentations or shared through Esri's cloud mapping platform, ArcGIS Online. Maps shared through ArcGIS Online can then be distributed throughout an organization or embedded into mobile or web applications.
The interactive maps and presentations business professionals create with Esri Maps for Office provide a powerful way of exploring issues ranging from gaps in existing service to opportunities for growth. Esri Maps for Office allows analysts to investigate their data as color-coded maps, point maps, or heat maps, and provides full control over the way data is displayed on the map. Organizations can overlay their data on a set of standardized Esri background maps or search through the extensive library of geospatial content available through ArcGIS Online.
Esri Maps for Office is available as a free download to organizations with ArcGIS Online subscriptions. For more information on Esri Maps for Office, visit esri.com/maps4office.
Esri announced a strategic alliance with Microsoft to assist public and private agencies and communities around the world during disasters. Microsoft will display Esri public information maps on its cloud-based Disaster Response Incident Portal, as well as point citizens to the maps via its online outlets, such as MSN and Bing. Esri's ArcGIS integration within a number of Microsoft's disaster response management solutions will provide governments and leading aid organizations with a more comprehensive set of tools to address key challenges.
Esri and Microsoft unveiled the alliance during the Esri International User Conference at the San Diego Convention Center in California.
"Esri is excited to work with Microsoft because of its world-leading software and services," says Russ Johnson, global director of disaster response for Esri. "This alliance leverages the strengths of both companies. The first phase involves using our technologies to support affected organizations and provide public information faster and in a more intuitive web map format during crises."
"The ability to include Esri intelligent, interactive web maps with Microsoft's suite of disaster response offerings increases our ability to assist government agencies and private citizens," says Harmony Mabrey, senior operations manager, Microsoft Disaster Response. "Both responders and citizens will have access to a more detailed level of knowledge about the impacts of a disaster, enabling them to make more informed decisions."
Accordinging to the announcement, these growing efforts will exponentially increase situational awareness and information sharing during disasters.
Benefits include the following:
Rapid data dissemination to targeted audiences and the general public during a disaster
Better situational awareness through Esri and Microsoft technologies for critical decision support
More information management resource availability for governments and leading response organizations through the combined efforts of Esri and Microsoft
TomTom announces map enhancements around the globe, delivering new coverage and features for automotive, government, enterprise and consumer customers. TomTom maps cover more than 200 countries and territories globally, now with navigable coverage for 112 countries across 36.5 million kilometres of roads.
Some of the enhancements include:
Addition of nearly 2.5 million Address Points in the United States to enable premium geocoding and navigation;
Upgraded 17,000 kilometres of AutoVias in Spain to motorway classification to improve routing and display functionality;
Increased street network coverage in Latvia to 100%, supporting street level navigation applications throughout the whole country;
Voice Maps reaches 20 million names and more than 30 million voice transcriptions;
Addition of lane and signpost information on freeways and inner city lanes in Thailand, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Qatar enables easier, more efficient and safer routing;
Introduction of new 3D landmarks for advanced visualization in India and South East Asia.
Visit TomTom at the Esri User Conference booth #1217 to learn more about global map products.
Portable Integrated System for GIS Applications. Altus also introduced the new ProCyon, which integrates the flexible, rugged Psion Workabout Pro handheld computer with Altus’ APS-3 RTK GNSS receiver for a powerful GIS data-acquisition platform, the company said.
Commercial Availability of GNSS Receiver. Altus Positioning Systems also announced the commercial availability of its new APS-U GNSS receiver. For maximum flexibility, the APS-U is scalable from a single stand-alone GNSS receiver to full options with heading, wireless links, precise point positioning, and RTK capability. The unit has an additional processor for on-board configuration and custom applications separate from the GNSS engine. It has an extensive suite of interfaces for data output, timing, event marks and a second antenna port for GNSS heading.
