GPS World

Tag: Brazil

  • Latin America Sanitation Company Goes with ProMark

    Photo: Saneamento Basico do Estado de São Paulo (SABESP)Saneamento Basico do Estado de São Paulo (SABESP), a Brazilian water and sewage collection utility owned by São Paulo state and Latin America’s largest water company by market capitalization, has selected Spectra Precision ProMark 120 and 220 GNSS receivers to assist in gathering the geographic location of all SABESP network assets and the location of all customers.

    SABESP provides water to more than 28.7 million customers, or 67 percent of the population of São Paulo state. Water loss due to leakage in the SABESP network is a significant problem. The biggest reason behind water loss is leaks in the network; additional factors include sub-metering, caused by low water pressure; unauthorized consumption; and fraud. 

    Improving water management, recovering lost revenue and improving the quality of the customer experience is a priority for SABESP, Spectra Precision said. To help improve revenue generation and reduce water loss, SABESP developed two projects: LigGeo, to geo-reference the water meter location of approximately 4.8 million SABESP customers; and CadGeo, to geo-reference and register the location of the SABESP water and sewage network infrastructure.

    According to Marcos Almir, sanitation systems analyst for the metropolitan department of development and management of SABESP, the twin projects of LigGeo and CadGeo were motivated by SABESP’s desire to improve productivity and competitiveness. “We created an innovative GIS effort to geo-reference and register SABESP distribution networks and buried assets. Tests showed the technical feasibility of using ProMark GNSS receivers and collectors with NTRIP technology to efficiently and effectively register all SABESP equipment in real time with geo-referenced attributes connected to the technical and commercial enterprise systems to optimize processes and reduce costs.”

    To implement the LigGeo and CadGeo projects, SABESP purchased 50 ProMark 120 and 220 GNSS receivers from Hezolinem Equipamentos Topograficos, Spectra Precision’s Brazil dealer. Both SABESP technicians and outsourced service providers will use the receivers.

    ProMark 120/220 GNSS receivers were chosen for their multiple advantages: They could be purchased as rovers only; they could run LigGeo and CadGeo proprietary software; they are compatible with local third-party networks, including CEGAT, Brazil’s largest private RTK geodetic base network, that delivers RTK network corrections enabling real-time accuracy of less that 20 cm; and they offered direct two-way 3G communication of information with the SABESP central cartographic base raster files.

     

  • Talks on Placing GLONASS Stations in the U.S. Not Renewed

    RIA Novosti is reporting that negotiations regarding the placement of a differential correction and monitoring GLONASS station in the United States have not yet been renewed. The news agency quotes remarks by Grigory Stupak, first deputy general designer of Russian space systems, during the Fourth International School on Satellite Navigation.

    In all, 40-50 GLONASS stations are planned for placement around the world, Stupak said. “As for the United States, we now consider the option of placing a station in Alaska, but the lack of it does not significantly affect the performance of our system,” he said, adding that Russia has worked with the southern African region and South America on placement of GLONASS stations, with one station in Brazil already operational. “There also have Cuban colleagues to host GLONASS stations,” he said.

    According to Stupak, taking into account developments in the world, it does not make sense to force the negotiation situation by placing a station in Alaska.

    GLONASS Satellites Based Mainly on Russian Component Base
    The prevailing share of the payload for both GLONASS-M and GLONASS-K spacecraft is created by JSC Russian Space Systems (CSW), but contains an element base of both domestic and foreign production, Stupak said, according to the the GLONASS Herald.

    “If you take onboard equipment [for] GLONASS-M, a significant portion of its designers develop mainly on electronic components of domestic production,” Stupak said.

    Including onboard equipment, while a significant portion of the GLONASS-M design is based on domestic electronic components, for the GLONASS-K, most of the components are Russian, but some foreign components are also being used.

  • TomTom Launches Speed Cameras Service in Brazil

    TomTom has today announced its speed cameras service is now available in Brazil. Drivers will benefit from up-to-date warnings of nearby fixed and red light cameras, as well as speed enforcement zones.

    Car manufacturers can integrate the service in their in-dash and mobile navigation systems, TomTom said. Backed by OpenLR* technology, TomTom is able to pinpoint more than 17,000 speed cameras across Brazil.

    “Drivers in Brazil are now better equipped to make smarter decisions on every journey, keeping to the designated speed limit and avoiding costly fines,” commented Ralf-Peter Schaefer, VP of Traffic at TomTom. “The launch of this service adds to the real-time information available to Brazilian drivers; TomTom recently launched its world-class traffic information in Brazil, helping drivers avoid frustrating traffic jams and reach their destination faster.”

  • First GLONASS Station Outside Russia Opens in Brazil

    Brazilian_GLONASS_SDMC_stationNews courtesy of CANSPACE Listserv.

    The Moscow Times is reporting that the first overseas GLONASS ground station for differential correction and monitoring was launched in Brasilia, Brazil, on Tuesday, citing information from the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos). The station will become the first correction point in the Western Hemisphere and will significantly improve the accuracy of GLONASS navigation signals, the agency said.

    GLONASS stations will also be installed in the United States, according to Pravda.Ru. “GLONASS stations are to be installed in the U.S.. This will improve the accuracy of the system. In general, stations like these are planned to be located in more than 30 countries of the world. Most of the countries that received the offers for the installation of the stations responded positively.

    “However, the process is slow because of the need to conclude appropriate intergovernmental agreements. The documents with Brazil were signed in 2012. Agreements with Spain, Indonesia and Australia will be finalized soon,” Pravda.Ru said.

    The Brazilian SDCM station is located on the campus of the University of Brasilia.