Category: Events

Registration open for ION Joint Navigation Conference 2021
The Institute of Navigation (ION) announces that registration for the Joint Navigation Conference (JNC) is now open.

The JNC, sponsored by the Military Division of the Institute of Navigation, will be held Aug. 24-26 (FEDCON U.S. ONLY) at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington, Kentucky (Greater Cincinnati, Ohio).

The Classified Sessions (Secret U.S. ONLY) will be held Aug. 27, at the Air Force Institute of Technology on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Visit requests and approvals are required for all session attendees.

View the JNC 2021 program and register at ion.org/jnc.

JNC 2021 is the largest U.S. military positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) conference of the year, with joint service and government participation.

Four new panel sessions have been introduced to this year’s technical program, which will host leaders and decision makers as they discuss and debate
- MGUE Integration
- Rapid Agile Development and Manufacturing
- the National Critical Infrastructure Threat
- Combatant Command Joint Urgent Operation Need (Secret, U.S. Only).
The technical program will focus on enhancing dominance and resilience for warfighting and homeland security PNT, and will include keynote addresses from:
- William B. Nelson, director, Assured Positioning Navigation &Timing (APNT) Cross Functional Team (CFT), U.S. Army Futures Command
- Ray Chartier, Jr., Safety of Navigation Mission manager, National Geospatial Intelligence Agency
- General David D. Thompson, vice xhief of Space Operations, United States Space Force
- Bradford Parkinson, Stanford Center for PNT
Attendance Restricted for JNC Technical Sessions

Conference attendance for both FEDCON (U.S. ONLY) (Aug. 24-26) and Classified Sessions (U.S. ONLY) (Aug. 27) will be screened by the Joint Navigation Warfare Center. Visit requests and approvals are required for all technical participants.

The exhibit hall is open to any registered conference attendee or exhibiting company representative, and all materials shall be designated DISTRO A/Publicly Releasable After Review.

Government-issued photo ID will be required to access all conference events.

If you have questions, contact the Institute of Navigation at [email protected] or by calling +1-703-366-2723.
March 18, 2021
Frontier Precision launches virtual User Conference for 2021

The Frontier Precision 2021 TechXpo User Conference takes virtual its popular and informative in-person user conferences, sponsored by Frontier Precision for the past two decades. The conference will take place March 30-April 1, 11 a.m. to 5.pm. Central Daylight Time.

During the 2021 TechXpo, participants can engage in more than 70 webinars, live question-and-answer sessions, daily prizes and a virtual trade show with more than 15 industry vendors such as Trimble, DJI, Yellowscan and more.

Participants will learn new ways to measure, with a wealth of knowledge to be learned and shared, the company said.

“We’ve continued to take our core values of customer service and training, and be the first to bring new technology to the customer as a basic part of our DNA as a company,” said Dennis Kemmesat, Frontier Precision president and CEO.

The virtual conference is highly interactive, making information and technology accessible from a desktop whether in another city, another state, or somewhere on the other side of the world.

The three-day conference will explore the best technology from the engineering, land survey, geospatial information systems (GIS), construction and unmanned aerial system (UAS) industries.

The $49 registration includes 30-day access to recordings.

About Frontier Precision. Frontier Precision is an employee-owned company with 33 years of experience serving survey, mapping, engineering, construction, GIS, forensics, law enforcement, forestry, water resources, mosquito and vector control, and natural resources professionals.

As one of the top Geospatial Trimble dealers in the world, Frontier Precision has been at the forefront of technology. The company provides business solutions in the areas of UAS/drones, laser-based scanning, 3D visualization and virtual reality.

The company is headquartered in Bismarck, North Dakota, with locations in South Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Hawaii.

March 5, 2021
GNSS Winter School set to take place in Islamabad

GNSS Winter School 2021 is planned for Feb. 22-26 in Islamabad, Pakistan. The Institute of Space Technology is hosting the event, in collaboration with the Space Education Research Lab of the National Center of GIS and Space Applications.

GNSS Winter School will be held on the institute’s campus; however, in case of severe circumstances (such as COVID-19), it will take place virtually online either partially or entirely.

GNSS Winter School will focus on GNSS positioning, coordinate and time reference systems, satellite orbit and position determination, signals, receivers, and specialized areas of inertial and integrated navigation systems.

A special session is planned on GNSS applications and opportunities in the current GNSS market.

The school is intended for engineers, researchers and students working in aeronautics and astronautics; guidance, navigation and controls; satellite or radio navigation; inertial and integrated navigation systems; space systems; constellation designs; interplanetary navigation; remote sensing; geoinformation science; and similar allied areas.

Registration is open through Feb. 15.

January 26, 2021
Postponed 2021 IGS Workshop now to take place in 2022

The IGS Workshop, scheduled for September 2021 by the International GNSS Service (IGS), has been postponed to 2022. The IGS Central Bureau voted for the postponement in December during its governing board meeting.

The IGS Workshop, originally intended to take place 2020, was postponed to 2021 because of travel restrictions associated with COVID-19. The dates of the workshop will be determined later.

The IGS is a service of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG), its Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS), The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG), and a network member of the International Science Council (ISC) World Data System (WDS).

January 5, 2021
GEO Business 2021 moved to the fall

Diversified Communications, organizer of the GEO Business 2021 event, announced that the show will be moved from May 19-20 to Nov. 24-25. It will still take place at ExCel London.

GEO Business connects the data holders and processors with the people who benefit from the applications and insight, which geospatial information provides.

“Although all the signs are positive for a restart for large scale events from Easter, we feel May could be a little early to give everyone the best possible chance for a great show,” said Diversified Communications. “So after consulting with the geospatial community, we’ve made the tough decision to push GEO Business back to the autumn for one year.”

GEO Business will give attendees the opportunity to explore the latest geospatial technology, learn from industry experts, try technology before they it buy, grow their professional work and boost their careers, organizers added.

December 17, 2020
Orolia launches virtual trade show to exhibit aircraft solutions

Orolia has launched the virtual Orolia Air Show, which will take place June 23-26. The free event aims to connect the global aviation industry.

“As the aviation industry is deeply impacted in daily operations and trade shows are on hold, Orolia is highlighting the importance of aviation technologies with this global event,” the company said.

Attendees will have the opportunity to catch up on the latest industry updates and compliance requirements in a series of one-hour sessions.

Session topics will include the next generation emergency locator transmitters for commercial airlines; combat search-and-rescue beacons to support critical military missions; advanced GNSS anti-jamming and spoofing solutions for commercial and military critical infrastructure; and timing and synchronization embedded systems.

Founded in 2006 and headquartered in France, Orolia provides resilient positioning, navigation and timing solutions.

June 11, 2020
ION GNSS+ 2020 to be hosted virtually and in person

ION GNSS+ 2020 organizers have decided to host the event both in person and virtually. The ION GNSS+ 2020 virtual option will mirror the technical program being presented live, Sept. 21-25 in St. Louis, Missouri.

“This year, recognizing that some won’t be able to attend ION GNSS+ 2020 due to restrictions and with the goal of increasing global accessibility to everyone who wants to participate, the Institute of Navigation is excited to offer an ION GNSS+ 2020 virtual option,” the Institute of Navigation (ION) said.

Two session tracks will be live streamed, including the keynote plenary session, all panel sessions and mix of other sessions from various technical tracks. Virtual attendees also will be invited to participated in a moderated Q&A.

In addition, all technical sessions will be audio-recorded as they are taking place, with the slides uploaded to the ION GNSS+ 2020 virtual conference site. Virtual attendees will have the option of viewing all technical presentations on demand and on their own schedules, organizers added. The virtual conference option, however, does not include the pre-conference tutorials or pre-conference short courses.

All scheduled technical papers will be presented by authors in-person in St. Louis. The conference, however, will not include pre-recorded or off-site virtual presentations of technical papers.

ION will also provide an expanded online exhibitor profile that will allow exhibitors to upload a complete company profile with sales and contact information, company logos and company brochures. The online exhibitor profile also will include a link that allows attendees to email an exhibitor directly to ask questions or set up a phone or virtual appointment. Additionally, companies that purchased an island booth will be provided the opportunity to live stream an exhibitor demonstration during a scheduled conference break.

Virtual meeting attendance will be free for all first-time ION GNSS+ attendees. If an individual or organization requires assistance in order to participate in the show, ION is also offering a COVID-19 economic impact discount for the virtual option.

June 11, 2020
Esri User Conference goes virtual because of COVID-19
The Esri User Conference, which usually takes place in San Diego in July, will this year be held virtually.

“As a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis, we are making the decision to move the 2020 Esri User Conference in San Diego to a virtual format. This is a great disappointment to me personally, as I know it will be for many of you,” Esri CEO Jack Dangermond told those planning to attend in an April 22 e-mail.

The following is an outline of Esri’s current plan, with more information available in the Esri UC FAQs:
- The event will take place July 13–15, 2020.
- The plenary session, technical workshops and Esri Showcase will be virtual, featuring many demonstrations and live discussions during the conference.
- There will be many opportunities for networking, collaboration and real-time interaction with Esri experts and staff.
- User presentations and the map gallery will be featured digitally.
- A library of recorded sessions and demos will be created and kept available as an ongoing resource.
- Registration will be complimentary for all Esri customers who are current on their maintenance or subscription.
Dangermond also asked for ideas and suggestions solicited through a survey by April 29.

“Forty years ago this month, we had our first User Conference in Redlands, California, with only a handful of participants,” Dangermond wrote. “While initially no one was quite sure of what the outcome would be, the event started an ongoing tradition where Esri and our users would come together, share our work, learn and create a community of common interests.

“That first meeting on the Esri campus provided the groundwork for the annual event at which thousands of professionals from every corner of the globe meet one another, share inspiring examples of work and learn from each other’s experiences.

“While we can’t replicate the experience of being together in person, we will do our best to create an amazing event that will continue to move you and our community forward. One of the benefits of going with a virtual format will be that organizations will be able to send an unlimited number of attendees.”

Photo: GPS World Staff
April 22, 2020
GPS Caucus forms in Congress

By: J. David Grossman, GPS Innovation Alliance

Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Representatives Dave Loebsack (D-IA) and Don Bacon (R-NE) in launching the Congressional GPS Caucus in March. This bipartisan, bicameral caucus will elevate the ever-increasing importance of GPS technologies to the U.S. economy and infrastructure. As evidence of that, today more than 3.3 million jobs in the United States rely heavily on GPS.

Agriculture is front and center in the states and districts these policymakers represent, and the cost savings as well as jobs and family incomes are noteworthy. Nationwide, GPS has led to $8.2 billion in savings through precision agriculture, while yielding increases in grain production across the country. Further, GPS has become an indispensable and reliable part of the country’s national infrastructure. Public and private investment in GPS-based technologies and services have produced a steady stream of innovations, making the U.S. a global leader in the sector.

The GPS Caucus will prioritize ensuring GPS signals remain continuously available, accurate, reliable and resilient. To better support the long-term health and future of GPS, the caucus plans to host educational briefings and technology demonstrations, in addition to advocating for policies that keep GPS at the forefront. On April 2, these efforts will kickoff with a “GPS 101” educational briefing on the Hill featuring remarks from Senator Duckworth, Representative Loebsack, Colonel Curtis Hernandez, US Air Force Director National Security Space Policy, National Space Council and industry leaders from Deere & Company, Garmin and Trimble.

To further reaffirm the critical importance of GPS, the GPS Caucus introduced concurrent resolutions in both the Senate and House. The resolutions outline the economic benefits of GPS, totaling more than $68 billion to the U.S. economy each year, and the sectors GPS technology supports, none of which would be possible without the contributions made by the men and women of the Air Force who maintain the GPS constellation.

As efforts to advance 5G, precision agriculture and smart cities continue, GPS will only become more valuable to modern-day operations and it remains critical that policymakers, companies and industry leaders alike, foster policy that keeps GPS at the forefront.

Featured photo: Brian Kinney/Shutterstock.com

March 11, 2019
Speaker details announced for Autonomous Safety-Critical Workshop
A free Cognizant Autonomous Systems for Safety Critical Applications (CASSCA) Workshop will be held 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. on Jan. 29 at the Hyatt Regency Reston in Reston, Virginia. This is scheduled to take place the day before and at the same location as the Institute of Navigation’s International Technical Meeting and Precise Time & Time Interval Systems and Applications (ION ITM/PTTI) 2018 conference.

The workshop is complimentary but registration is required to attend.

The workshop consists of a full day of presentations and discussions on the opportunities and challenges associated with developing fully autonomous systems that are cognizant and trustworthy for safety-critical applications by leading experts in the field. Speakers include:
- David Corman, Program Manager, Cyber-Physical Systems Program; National Science Foundation (NSF). Dr. Corman’s current research interests are in the field of Cyber Physical Systems (CPS), security for CPS, unmanned systems, manufacturing, and technologies supporting Smart and Connected Communities.
- Paul DeBitetto, Vice President, Software Engineering; Top Flight Technologies. Dr. DeBitetto leads all Top Flight’s Software and Embedded Systems Development. That includes product-related flight control, simulation, computing, sensing, data communications, security-related controls and software solutions.
- Finch Fulton, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy; Department of Transportation (DOT)
- Joao Hespanha, Professor and Chair of Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; University of California, Santa Barbara. His current research interests include hybrid and switched systems; multi-agent control systems; distributed control over communication networks (also known as networked control systems); the use of vision in feedback control; stochastic modeling in biology; and network security.
- Robert Peterson, Professor and Director of Center for Insurance Law and Regulation; Santa Clara University.
  Mr. Peterson teaches torts, insurance law and regulation, evidence and products liability, and other courses. He is a past chair of the California State Bar Standing Committee on Insurance Law, and is director of the Law School’s Center for Insurance Law and Regulation.
- Signe Redfield, Roboticist and Mission Manager; Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). Dr. Redfield’s primary interests include performance evaluation of autonomous systems, foundations of robotics, and cooperative behaviors for autonomous underwater vehicles.
- Giorgio Rizzoni, Professor and Director of Center for Automotive Research (CAR); The Ohio State University. The CAR is an interdisciplinary university research center that conducts research on advanced automotive and transportation technologies and systems engineering, focusing on sustainable mobility, advanced propulsion systems, human safety and the environment.
- Steven Rogers, Senior Scientist for Automatic Target Recognition and Sensor Fusion; Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Dr. Rogers serves as the principal scientific authority and independent researcher in the field of multi-sensor automatic target recognition and sensor fusion.
The workshop is organized by Zaher (Zak) M. Kassas, an assistant professor at the University of California, Riverside and director of the Autonomous Systems Perception, Intelligence & Navigation (ASPIN) Laboratory. His research focuses on cyber-physical systems, autonomous vehicles, intelligent transportation systems, navigation systems, and software-defined radio. He has co-authored two cover stories in GPS World magazine, “LTE cellular steers UAV: Signals of opportunity work in challenged environments” and “Opportunity for Accuracy: Terrestrial SOPs attractive supplement to GNSS.”

To register for the CASSCA Workshop, go to www.ion.org/cassca.

Registration is also now open for the ION International Technical Meeting (ITM) and Precise Time and Time Interval Systems Applications Meeting (PTTI), which begin the next day (January 30-February 1) at the same location. See www.ion.org/itm for more information.
December 13, 2017
UAV manufacturer senseFly joins April 20 webinar panel

A speaker from UAV manufacturer senseFly will appear on the free April 20 webinar, “From Flying Drones to Doing Business,” addressing ease of use for the user in business applications. The Switzerland-based company specializes in professional-grade UAVs for survey, mapping, precision agriculture and asset inspection. The company recently became the first drone operator to be granted anytime Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) authorization in Switzerland.

Photo: senseFly

The webinar will cover a broad range of issues concerning sensor integration aboard a flying platform, and in particular their use for commercial purposes. Webinar attendees will have the opportunity to ask direct questions of the speakers, both upon registration and during the live event. Register free at env-gpsworld-integration.kinsta.cloud/webinar.

The senseFly speaker (name to be announced soon) will join a panel that consists of:
Gustavo Lopez, Product manager GNSS solutions for UAV applications, Septentrio; Jan Leyssens , Managing Director, Sales & Business Development, Airobot; and Zak Kassas, Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California, Riverside.

Further speaker details:

Lopez: Septentrio is an leader in bringing high end GNSS technology when accuracy and reliability matters. Gustavo Lopez is Product manager for UAS applications at Septentrio. Since joining the company, he has held a number of R&D and product management roles. Gustavo holds a Bachelor of Computer Science degree from Monterrey’s Technology Institute and an MBA from United Business Institute

Leyssens: Airobot specializes in meeting safety demands for UAVs by providing intelligent safety components, specifically designed for drones, and in facilitating end-users’ success in completing their missions. Leyssens has Masters’ degrees in avionics, electrical engineering and business administration.

Kassas will present the research material from his cover story in the April issue of GPS World: “LTE Steers UAV — No GPS? No Problem! Signals of Opportunity Work in Challenged Environments.” Long-term evolution cellular can be exploited for accurate and resilient autonomous vehicle navigation in the absence of clear GNSS signals. Simulation and experimental results demonstrate that GPS-like performance can be achieved in the absence of GPS signals when cellular pseudoranges aid an inertial navigation system.

April 4, 2017
Tecterra to host day-long technology forum

Logo: Tecterra

Tecterra will be hosting its Tecnovate17 technology forum on June 21.

The event, which will take place at the Calgary Telus Convention Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, incorporates elements from the past Tecterra Geomatics Showcase event and continues to add to the Canadian technology landscape, the company says.

It will focus primarily on technology, innovation and commercialization, as well as capitalize on Canada’s position in geospatial technology.

Tecterra is a technology innovation support center focused on enabling the development and commercialization of innovative geospatial technologies.

February 16, 2017