NovAtel Inc. has placed a research contract to determine how GNSS technology can deliver a positioning solution that meets both the safety and accuracy requirements of unmanned automotive vehicles.
The research will include study concepts for high-precision, high-integrity carrier phase algorithms as well as threat models and safety monitors with the purpose of improving the safety of autonomous land transportation.
NovAtel introduced its RTK Assist service at the Intergeo show, held this week in Hamburg, Germany.
RTK Asssit is a subscription-based service that provides users with satellite-delivered correction data to seamlessly continue centimeter-level accuracy during real-time kinematic (RTK) correction outages caused by communication disruptions. Users are able to maintain RTK level performance for up to 20 minutes, reducing any associated downtime and optimizing solution productivity.
RTK is a well-established method of achieving cm-level accuracy with GNSS. However, if the RTK correction data link to the receiver is interrupted, performance degrades quickly. RTK ASSIST subscribers are able to maintain the accuracy of their positioning solution during these interruptions, avoiding any down-time. RTK ASSIST is best suited for applications where there are potential obstructions, dead spots or baseline limitations that would cause RTK network correction losses for short periods of time.
Neil Gerein, Portfolio Manager for NovAtel stated, “Combining NovAtel’s long history of expertise in RTK positioning with correction data delivered directly to the receiver via satellite allows for a continuous centimeter-level solution that is globally available 24/7.”
Last year at InterGeo 2015, UAVs ruled, for at least the second year in a row, although some of its newest-thing gloss seemed to be wearing off. This year, sensor integration in both hardware and software is a dominant theme — and one with broader implications and applications.
GNSS positioning technology, aided in many cases by laser scanning, other imaging sensors, total stations, Lidar and camera systems, all collaborating as inputs to mobile mapping systems or machine-control systems, together form a durable platform for many present and future applications.
NavCom booth at InterGeo.
Among the GPS/GNSS companies exhibiting here: CHC Navigation, ComNav Technology, Eos Positioning Systems, Hemisphere GNSS, Navcom Technology, NovAtel, Septentrio, and Tallysman.
“I think it’s a must for every surveyor to participate and get updated with all the developments,” said Chryssy Potsiou, president of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG), “to try to make the best combination of tools and software so that we can have the best output, in order to provide reliable services at affordable prices, in short time. The world needs solutions, cheap and fast.”
Smart Cities. Along with the roar of the four connected exhibition halls where many new products are being rolled out on this premier world stage, there is a lot of talk — a lot of talk — in the presentation auditoriums about vision, and smart cities, and connectedness in it many forms, electronic and otherwise.
The international trade fair for geodesy, geoinformation and land management, InterGeo can be overwhelming, with roughly 550 exhibits from 33 countries, and 16,000 visitors from 92 countries. It spans everything from surveying, geoinformation, remote sensing and photogrammetry to complementary solutions and technologies, processing, using and analyzing geodata over the Internet and exploring new applications and solutions — it’s all here. Themes include mobility, energy supply, climate protection, and liveable cities and rural areas. Citizen involvement, data protection, data security and e-government all play a key role in future developments. This year, the conference published a pre-show report on geodata and what it calls Business World 4.0.
Host city Hamburg, an economically strong, vibrant city and one of the top three shipping ports in Europe, embraced digital strategy at an early stage. Sustainable city planning, climate protection, an intelligent mobility concept and IT-controlled port management are all aspects of the city that could not work without geodata.
Making Connections. “Our [geospatial] industry is now more and more related, more and more embedded with many other disciplines,” said Nigel Clifford, CEO of Ordnance Survey UK, who gave one of the conference keynotes. “One of the key questions we are facing is: What skills will the workforce of the future need to have, in order to flourish in this interconnected world?
“Some of the more obvious ones are digital capability, looking at data sciences. Also we spoke about some of the softer skills: the ability to look across disciplines, the ability to work with different functions, and really importantly, the ability for our industry to explain its value and be part of the decision-making which is going on around us all the time.
“We’re beginning to see the first fruits of the Internet of Things. There may be some inflated expectations at this point. It’s our job to test that. I’m confident there are some brilliant use cases developing over the next five years in the fields of health, transport, and community engagement. Making a city more efficient, more livable, more secure, and more business-friendly, to draw tax dollars into the equation. What we’re able to do today is so much more data-rich, so much more connected, than we’ve ever been able to do before. ”
He cited pilot public-private partnership projects in Manchester and another unnamed UK city going forward in this regard, with involvement from Cisco, Siemens, and British Telecomm along with Ordnance Survey. “It’s a mixed economy coming together, because there isn’t one answer.”
Looking into the future, he said “Developing nations in particular require a fundamental geospatial fabric in order to boost themselves. I hope there will be a broadening of the focus from what we can do absolutely at the cutting edge of technology with reasonably affluent societies, to thinking about how we can take that into the less affluent societies, and raise all boats through the efforts of this great industry.”
Gorillas Enter Room. Intel has taken a stake in the commercial drone space with its new Falcon UAV. “Predominantly, we are looking at inspections, construction, agriculture, as well as 3D modeling.” The company was joined by Oracle and Autodesk as first-time exhibitors at the show, and they did not enter timidly; big stands.
UAV über Deutschland. In moves shadowing those in the United States, the German Minister for Transport spoke about introducing regulations to govern civil and commercial use of UAVs. The newly published draft foresees the introduction of mandatory registration for unmanned aerial systems. Pilots will need a valid license to fly drones above 100 meters.
The United States Naval Observatory (USNO) has selected NovAtel’s GPS Anti-Jam Technology (GAJT) to satisfy a requirement for a controlled reception pattern antenna capability at sites throughout the Department of Defense Information Network (DoDIN).
The DoDIN is the core global enterprise network of the United States military and is depended upon for secure and sensitive voice, data, video and bandwidth services. This latest order brings the number of NovAtel GAJT antennas ordered by the U.S. Navy to more than 600.
GAJT protects GPS-based navigation and precise timing receivers from intentional jamming and accidental interference. It is a null-forming antenna system that ensures satellite signals necessary to compute position and time are always available.
The commercial off-the-shelf product comes in versions suitable for land, sea, fixed installations and smaller platforms such as UAVs. Military vehicles and platforms, networks and timing infrastructure also benefit from the protection that GAJT provides. There is no need to replace GPS receivers already installed, as GAJT works with civil and military receivers, and is ready for M-code, according to NovAtel.
NovAtel’s manufacturing techniques and quality processes mean that that the company can ramp up quickly to meet volume requirements, the company said.
“This order underlines our ability to deliver GAJT in volume and on time,” said Michael Ritter, president and CEO of the Canada-based NovAtel. “GAJT has now been shipped and is in use operationally by 12 allied nations around the globe. We are grateful for the rigorous technology selection process conducted by USNO which led to this latest order.”
The U.S. Naval Observatory is located in Washington, D.C.
Located in Washington, D.C., the USNO is one of the oldest scientific agencies in the United States, with a primary mission to produce Positioning, Navigation and Timing for the United States Navy and the United States Department of Defense.
Back again in Portland, Oregon, the 2016 Institute of Navigation’s ION GNSS+ conference was a great opportunity for the GNSS community to catch up on what’s been cooking in the industry, and of course who’s been doing what in the research community.
The attendees eagerly took to a wide range of technical paper presentation sessions, and from time to time came to take a look at what industry had to offer on the exhibit floor. Lots of engaging research reports, from work undertaken over the last year by academia, again drew a significant number of attendees from around the world.
On the other hand, industry continued the trend to go to trade shows in application sectors and pull back somewhat from ION GNSS+ as a place to look for product sales. So the number of companies on the ION show floor remained around the same or maybe a little less than in the previous few years. Nevertheless, the quality of the companies exhibiting remained high and there were some interesting newcomers.
A number of major GNSS receiver manufactures have pulled back from ION, so there were only two established U.S. companies and two new U.S. entrants at the show. On the other hand, GNSS simulation companies were at ION in force — eight all told, or twice as many as the receiver manufacturers present who have been their historic customers. But the trend in GNSS simulation now appears to be to move down stream towards the needs of integrators and systems outfits — in segments such as automotive, UAV and agriculture — with lower cost, very capable simulators.
Receiver makers roll out new tech
As a consequence, the NovAtel and Septentrio booths got a lot of attendee traffic, while BDStar (Unicore receivers and Harxon antennas) and ComNav also had a number of visitors to their booths. As usual, NavTech, who represent almost all the manufacturers, also had a busy exhibit.
OEM7600 dual-frequency receiver.
NovAtel chose to launch its OEM-7 series of GNSS receivers and a newly designed VEXXIS high-precision antenna at ION GNSS+, which is a somewhat refreshing return to the ION GNSS+ launch platform we used to see in the past. A new highly integrated ASIC at the heart of this receiver now provides, amongst other features, 555 channels, L-band support, inertial SPAN capability and an intriguing “Interference Toolbox”. The toolbox enables integrators to localize interference effects over a wide band — especially helpful for densely packed electronics, which you might expect in a UAV, for instance.
Interference Toolbox Screenshot.
Septentrio didn’t have a whole lot of new product announcements, but as usual the company has been working hard at improving existing capabilities on its receivers. The AsteRx4 receiver that uses a new ASIC has been available for a while, but it too boasts 544 channels — perhaps too many to actually be used in practice — robust heading, centimeter-level RTK and decimeter-level PPP (with TerraStar and Veripos corrections) with dual L-band channels, and an improved suite of advanced interference mitigation (AIM+) capabilities. This helps detection and removal of the effects of “chirp jamming” from low-power “cigarette-lighter” jammers — using signal analysis and adjustment of adaptive notch filters.
Septentrio did announce a new PolaRx5TR packaged time-and-frequency transfer receiver and a contract with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for reference stations and timing. A report by UNAVCO also found its way into my inbox, which related comparative testing of the PolaRx5 and other manufacturers’ receivers in connection with a UNAVCO RFP – Septentrio did O.K. and was selected as a preferred vendor, which no doubt influenced the JPL award and added to an already good first half year for the company.
The Septentrio PolaRX5TR.
BDStar had a range of GPS, GLONASS, Beidou receivers from its subsidiary Unicorecomm, along with an impressive selection of antennas from Harxon, another of its Chinese subsidiaries. Both product lines have done very well in the Chinese market, and BDStar would like to sell more in North America.
ComNav also displayed a similar range of GNSS receivers and antennas, with new versions of both since last year, and a strong desire to break through into the US market.
Simulators a big presence
Simulator companies at ION included the more established Spirent, Spectracom, CAST, IFEN and Rohde & Schwarz — we could even now consider RaceLogic/LabSat as a record-and-playback fixture in the market. But in the wings and making lots of waves at the show were Syntony from France and Skydel from Montreal, Canada.
Spirent brought its usual large-scale GNSS simulators to ION, but also featured an interference detection and software analysis suite, a 16-bit high-fidelity record/playback unit, along with a new multi-frequency simulator aimed at downstream integrators. The GSS200D Detector finds interference effects and is able to relate them to the threats in the environment around a receiver. The object is to help debug an installation by finding internal interferers. The analysis tools can also help differentiate between regular equipment interference and potential external jammers.
Spirent’s new GSS200D detector.
Spirent also displayed a record/playback unit that has 16-bit playback capability, enabling a user to record and review a particular interference event, and then feed their new commercial simulator in order to replicate the interference. So a passing isolated jamming event can be analyzed in detail. Multiple reruns are possible to confirm the effect on the target system, and following equipment modifications, prove that the problem has indeed been neutralized.
Spirent analysis tools.
RaceLogic introduced its new wideband LabSat 3 record/playback system for GPS L1, GLONASS L1, Galileo E1, BeiDou B1, QZSS and SBAS. Recording live signals for any or all of these signals then allows later playback of a canned sample for equipment debugging on the bench. The LabSat product line has been around for some time, and this addition increases the debug capability for downstream users at an affordable price in a very portable format. When used with the RaceLogic SatGen software system, the user has access to a powerful toolset for testing new GNSS devices.
LabSat 3 and SatGen test set-up.
Spectrcom displayed its multi-frequency, multi-constellation simulator and also featured a GNSS vulnerability test system for interference detection and system debugging. The company’s approach requires two simulators, both synchronized by an atomic clock, allowing a PC-based Test Scenario Control to generate reproducible interference effects for debugging.
CAST Navigation is already moving downstream quite quickly with its CAST-SGX handheld GNSS simulator. With a touchscreen display, this simplified L1 GPS simulator (with P-code option) is ideal for test-bench debugging.
Rohde & Schwarz had its usual array of high-end test equipment, with a test set-up aimed at demonstrating testing of a Wi-Fi indoor location application on a smartphone.
IFEN showed up with a completely re-engineered simulator with huge frequency/channel capacity. The Titan GNSS Simulator houses up to 8 RFSIM modules, each of which carries 32 configurable satellite signals. A fully configured Titan chassis can therefore provide 256 channels of GPS L1/L2/L5, GLONASS G1/G2/G3, Galileo E1/E5/E6, Beidou B1/B2/B3, IRNSS L5 and S-band, QZSS L1/L2/L5/LEX and all current L1/L5 SBAS signals. Titan also has up to four independent RF outputs.
IFEN Titan GNSS Simulator.
Skydel is one of the newcomers in GNSS simulation, but has made significant inroads first appearing last year at ION. Skydel now boasts a full-up, reconfigurable GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Beidou “software” simulator which the company claims to sell at a 1/3 the price of a conventional hardware simulator. And during the year, Skydel teamed up with Talen-X in Ohio, who have embedded Skydel software-defined in a U.S.-sourced GPS/GLONASS/Galileo/Beidou simulator that can include GPS P/Y and M-code.
Broadsim from Talen-X powered by Skydel.
Syntony rises high by going under (the ground)
The noise in simulation at ION was, however, created by Syntony from Toulouse in France. Syntony recently won a 15-simulator order from OneWeb — the outfit that plans to launch a 640 internet connectivity satellite constellation through 2020. With funding secured from Virgin Group and Qualcomm in 2015, initial satellite build is underway at Airbus Defence and Space, launch services are contracted with Arianespace to provide 21 multi-sat launches on Soyuz beginning in 2017 with optional launch service with Virgin Galactic. So Syntony is likely going to be able to build, deliver and be paid for its 15 simulators, which will be used for testing GPS capability that is integrated into each comms satellite.
Syntony’s simulator is also software-defined and is reconfigurable. The software-defined heart of this system comes from a Syntony GPS/Galileo receiver, and a version of this receiver has now been sold for use in the Airbus Adeline re-usable space module. This receiver is a “multi-antenna receiver” in order to avoid signal or tracking loss while switching between antennas during the Safran launcher rotation. The catch here is that Syntony must develop this receiver to Airbus critical airborne software=qualification standards — no mean feat! Syntony is also providing a version of its Constellator simulator for testing this multi-antenna input receiver.
An ECHO record/playback system is also available, which includes high-fidelity 16-bit RF outputs.
Finally, Syntony was able to capture a proof-of-concept location infrastructure project for Stockholm, Sweden’s, underground metro. The metro stations are pretty deep underground, as they have been dug under the sea in and around Stockholm, and no one had been able to come up with a system that would enable emergency 911 calls with associated essential localized position information to be carried from within the stations. Syntony was able to provide a GPS-like signal infrastructure at the stations which is compatible with GPS-enabled smartphones. It worked well, and Syntony verified that there was no radiation of the signal outside any of the entrances to the test station — so no GPS interference. It actually worked so well that Syntony got the contract to equip all 50 metro stations in Stockholm, and the Syntony is now working to spread its system around the metros of all major cities, worldwide.
Defining the Galileo PRS signal…
Then I came across Fraunhofer towards the end of the show, and their posters about a Galileo PRS (Public Regulated Service) receiver. Now, we know that there has been significant discussion between the different security services of countries across the European Union, and its taken a lot of time to get to a definition of the PRS signal and who has access. So it wasn’t surprising that there was no hardware on the Fraunhofer booth; what’s surprising is that there was any mention of such a receiver being available and telling attendees at a conference in the U.S. that it’s available.
I talked to a couple of people at their booth, and indeed there is such a receiver, but they really couldn’t tell me anything about it because telling is strictly verboten! Another strange anomaly of the Galileo program — the participants seem to want to let the U.S. know that they have the capability for a special access service, and a receiver is available to work with it, but they can’t tell us anything about it. I guess the idea may be to rattle the cage of the U.S. P-code/M-code guys, and let them know Galileo has caught up at last… But Fraunhofer has an idea of how to make things available to, well, err …. to somebody. They have a concept to have cellphone users who want PRS to connect with their cloud receiver, and they will decode and provide PRS position back over the internet. That solves the whole security thing…. OK, that should do it.
Where inertial stands
I also made the rounds of the inertial and inertial/GPS guys at the show, and there were quite a few. From NorthropGrumman and Systron Donner and their mil-spec high-end FOG and RLG and Quartz MEMS tube-shaped inertial units — could they be for shells or missiles? — to Silicon Sensing’s MEMS accels and gyros and their move out of automotive and towards high-precision performance, to Sensonor’s high-performance commercial MEMS/GNSS units, there were actually only a few of the inertial-aiding outfits present. Yet everything we hear is that for anything that moves, we really should use integrated inertial/GNSS, and UAVs especially want lots of that! So this part of the business looks to be quite healthy too…
Now another ION GNSS+ conference has come and gone — and I was reminded that maybe I’ve actually been to 95 percent of the ION September conferences over the last 30 years. And as I write, the last of the late Friday paper sessions are crawling to a close.
ION still remains a good place to come and learn, a place to meet industry colleagues and a place to see a little of what industry is up to. Definitely worth the trip, and don’t forget your business cards next year.
NovAtel has introduced its new VEXXIS series of GNSS antennas. NovAtel made the announcement at ION GNSS+, which is being held this week in Portland, Oregon.
The VEXXIS series includes two lines of antennas, the new GNSS-800 series and the GNSS-500 series introduced earlier this year. The series offers the latest advancements in GNSS antenna technology for multi-constellation and multifrequency GNSS applications.
The VEXXIS GNSS-800 series of antennas provide exceptional tracking performance previously unachievable in such a small form factor. Patented multi-point feeding network and radiation pattern optimization technology provides stable phase center and enhanced multipath rejection as well as exceptional low elevation satellite tracking while achieving high peak zenith gain.
The new technology enables the antenna to track the maximum number of satellites in any environment for an enhanced positioning solution. The GNSS-800 family of antennas are the toughest high precision antennas NovAtel has designed to date, ensuring their survivability in even the harshest operating environments.
The VEXXIS GNSS-500 series of antennas were designed with a low profile, aerodynamic enclosure, useful for ground vehicles in applications such as agriculture, machine control and mobile mapping.
Featuring the same multi-point feeding network as the GNSS-800 family, GNSS-500 antennas offer excellent multipath rejection and stable phase center. Signal reception is unaffected by the rotation of the antenna or satellite elevation, simplifying placement and installation. Vehicle mounting is easy with the antennas’ magnetic or screw mounting options.
VEXXIS GNSS-500 antennas are available for immediate ordering. GNSS-800 antennas will be available in the fourth quarter of 2016.
NovAtel Inc. has introduced the GPS-713-GGG-N and GPS-713-GGGL-N ATEX-qualified triple-frequency GNSS antennas with an Inmarsat rejection filter.
Based on the company’s pinwheel technology, the antennas offer multi-constellation reception of L1, L2 and L5 GPS; L1, L2 and L3 GLONASS; B1 and B2 BeiDou; as well as E1 and E5 a/b Galileo frequencies.
The GPS-713-GGGL-N also supports L-Band from 1525 to 1560 megahertz. The same antenna can be used for GPS-only, dual or triple constellation applications, resulting in increased flexibility and reduced equipment costs, the company said in a news release.
The phase center of the antennas remain constant as the azimuth and elevation angle of the satellites change. Signal reception is unaffected by the rotation of the antenna or satellite elevation, according to NovAtel. With the phase center in the same location for the GNSS signals, and with minimal phase center variation between antennas, the antenna is suitable for baselines of any length.
The rugged antenna is enclosed in a durable, waterproof housing and meets MIL-STD-810G for vibration, corrosive environment and salt fog, NovAtel says. The GPS-713-GGG-N and GPS-713-GGGL-N are similar in form factor to our other high performance GPS-700 series antennas, and bth antennas meet IEC60945 specifications.
The two antennas deliver choke-ring level antenna performance, but without the size and weight, NovAtel said. Both antennas provide enhanced Inmarsat interference rejection, which allows tracking of GNSS signals in the presence of high-powered Inmarsat transmitters that are typically found on marine vessels.
Locatalite transceiver installation in the White Sands Missile Range Ultra High-Accuracy Reference System, provided by the U.S. Air Force for testing equipment under conditions of GPS jamming.
Provides high-accuracy PNT even when GNSS jammed
A critical capability to predict for GNSS chips and receivers —and for devices using alternative or back-up PNT technologies — is how they will actually perform without GPS.
Filling this need, the U.S. Air Force 746th Test Squadron has declared Initial Operational Capability (IOC) for its new truth reference, the Ultra High-Accuracy Reference System (UHARS) at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Even when GPS — or any other GNSS system — is being completely jammed, UHARS provides extremely accurate positioning, navigation and time (PNT) over the large area that the system was designed to cover.
“Initial testing shows that UHARS delivers accurate independent PNT as good as, or better than, the Air Force’s current Central Inertial and GPS Test Facility Reference System, so it is perfectly able to support current customer requirements,” said Jim Brewer, chief scientist of the 746th Test Squadron. “However, more data are required to tune the UHARS filter and optimize its accuracy to meet even tighter PNT requirements, which is our objective. When this is achieved, UHARS will deliver truth accuracy for next-generation military capabilities, and we will declare UHARS Full Operational Capability.”
“UHARS is a rack-mounted, tightly integrated system of improved navigation sensors, a data acquisition system and a new post-mission Kalman filter, all of which need to work together,” said John Cao, technical director of the 746th. “It’s working very well, but once we completely measure and characterize the individual components and then tune and validate the filter, the complete system will provide a significantly more accurate reference solution for future airborne and land-based test vehicles in navigation warfare environments where modernized and legacy GPS signals are jammed from friendly or hostile systems.”
LocataLite Transceivers. To achieve these accurate reference solutions, UHARS requires a core Non-GPS Based Positioning System (NGBPS) component capable of operating and providing sub-meter position accuracy in a GPS-denied (jamming) environment.
The NGBPS subsystem of the UHARS program employs a network of ground-based LocataLite transceivers and test vehicle receivers manufactured by the Locata Corporation. The Locata network delivers centimeter-level positioning and navigation as well as nanosecond-level synchronization, which may be useful for military applications requiring precise time transfer in GPS-denied environments.
White Sands is a U.S. Army rocket range of almost 3,200 square miles in parts of five counties in southern New Mexico. It is the largest military installation in the U.S.
The LocataNet truth reference system can also provide a 2D solution to support ground-vehicle testing. Reportedly, the 2D solution, while also very good, has not yet been fully characterized. Once the filter has been fully tuned in this respect, White Sands could serve as a test facility for autonomous driving. It has many miles of paved highway, possibly in the hundreds of miles.
The importance and uniqueness of White Sands as GPS test facility springs from the fact that it is illegal to jam GPS elsewhere without a special permit, making it extremely difficult to create a real-world test scenario to see how GPS and other PNT devices perform under denied or restricted circumstances. This is of critical importance for flight testing (UAVs and other avionics) for which the UHARS was primarily designed and optimized.
Ligado study flawed, says NovAtel
Method shows lack of understanding of GPS uses
NovAtel Inc. has submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding Ligado Networks LLC’s (formerly LightSquared) License Modification Applications.
NovAtel raises deep concerns about the testing methodology used and conclusions presented by Ligado regarding the impact of its proposed usage of L-band frequencies for a terrestrial wireless network.
In its filing, NovAtel identified serious flaws in the testing methodology used to evaluate high-precision receivers. Although high-precision receivers were used during the testing, the high-precision position modes that are used to achieve centimeter-level positioning accuracy required by many professional and safety-critical applications were not evaluated.
The study shows a lack of understanding of the uses of the GPS by assuming that all applications require the same positioning accuracy, NovAtel said.
The filing also raises a number of concerns about the potential harmful interference impact on GPS receiver performance. NovAtel is particularly concerned that Ligado has moved away from what it understood to be an agreed-upon standard that interference tolerance should be limited to a received interference signal power level that causes no more than 1-dB degradation in the received C/N0 level.
NovAtel disagrees with the conclusion in the RAA Study that there is no meaningful correlation between a 1-dB change and GPS performance. NovAtel submits any interference must not exceed 1-dB degradation in received C/N0 if robust, precise positioning is to be maintained. Ligado has not yet proven that its use of the spectrum will not be detrimental to high-precision GNSS users, which is what the 1-dB C/N0 degradation metric ensures.
“To date, Ligado has not proven that its use of the proposed spectrum can be made compatible with high-precision GNSS,” NovAtel said in a press release. “The interference impact on the other GNSS constellations such as Galileo, GLONASS and BeiDou has not been addressed. These constellations are increasingly used in combination with GPS for many high-precision applications. Proposed, unverified mitigation methods such as narrowband antennas are presented in the Ligado filing without explanation of who will be responsible for the cost of such design modifications and retrofit programs.”
Galileo reaches teendom
Europe’s 13th and 14th Galileo satellites lifted off at 08:48 GMT from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana atop a Soyuz launcher. (Photo: ESA)
The Galileo constellation system now has 14 satellites in orbit after a May 24 double launch. Birds 13 and 14 lifted off together at 08:48 GMT (10:48 CEST, 05:48 local time) atop a Soyuz rocket from French Guiana. The twin Galileos were deployed into orbit close to 23,522 km altitude, inclined 57.394 degrees to the equator, 3 hours and 48 minutes after liftoff. Following days saw a careful sequence of orbital fine-tuning to bring them to their final working orbit, followed by a testing phase so that they can join the working constellation later this year.
Marconi Prize awarded to Brad Parkinson
The Marconi Society awarded its 2016 Marconi Prize to Bradford Parkinson. The annual prize recognizes major advances in information and communication science that benefit humanity: in this case, the difficult yet ultimately successful development of GPS. See gpsworld.com/marconi for details and a brief history.
NovAtel Inc. announced a new initiative and engineering team to develop functionally safe GNSS positioning technology for fully autonomous applications. The company leverages its extensive experience developing safety-critical systems for the aviation industry to meet the future safety thresholds required for driverless cars and autonomous applications in agriculture, mining, and other government, military and commercial markets.
In early 2015, NovAtel formed a specialized Safety Critical Systems Group of engineers with backgrounds in functional safety as well as all aspects of GNSS and inertial navigation systems (INS) technology. The Safety Critical Systems Group is focused on creating positioning products that will meet the exceptional performance and safety requirements of autonomous vehicles at the necessary production volumes and at the required price point.
The company has extensive background working within safety critical requirements. Michael Ritter, president & CEO stated, “Aviation in North America relies on NovAtel technology to ensure safe navigation and landing.” Ritter added, “The Federal Aviation Administration’s WAAS, and other global Space Based Augmentation Systems (SBAS), have relied on certified NovAtel GNSS receivers for many years as the foundation of their systems. With full GNSS signal and constellation support needed to solve the performance criteria of autonomous driving, NovAtel is uniquely qualified to deliver the optimal solution that will keep us all safe as we drive the autonomous highways of the future.”
Jonathan Auld, Novatel’s director of Safety Critical Systems.
NovAtel manufactures high-precision GNSS receivers, antennas and subsystems, with expertise in sensor integration, specifically that of GNSS and INS. Through its TerraStar correction service, NovAtel also offers a global Precise Point Positioning (PPP) correction solution that is already designed for safety-of-life applications.
With work underway for more than a year, NovAtel plans to achieve ISO/TS 16949 compliance by the end of 2016. This is an early key milestone in the Safety Critical Systems Group’s path, to be followed by an ISO 26262 compliant product.
Jonathan Auld is director of Safety Critical Systems at NovAtel. He first joined the company in 2000 and has held positions as a GNSS test engineer, test group manager, director of technology development, and director of portfolio management.
The service utilizes TerraStar corrections, which are delivered over L-band directly to NovAtel receivers without the need for additional base station infrastructure.
Antennas. When I was a kid, antennas meant the pair of rabbit ears sitting on top of the family TV set. We had to constantly adjust the angles to get the best reception, using aluminum foil to improve the signal.
Wow, how things have changed. Today, consumer users of smartphones, Fitbits, smartwatches, tablets and a hundred other electronic devices don’t even think about antennas. Most consumers probably haven’t given a thought to the fact that their favorite device contains an antenna.
Unlike broadcast antennas back in the day, modern GNSS antennas in consumer devices are invisible to the consumer, but perform even in less-than-ideal conditions. Every year brings new improvements and smaller sizes.
Then there are the external antennas, which grow more rugged to withstand the elements while receiving more signals from more constellations, such as BeiDou and Galileo.
GPS World has traditionally published its Antenna Survey in February following the Receiver Survey in January. The first antenna survey appeared in 2001, nine years after we published our first receiver survey. Perhaps it took a few years to realize how critical antennas are in GNSS systems.
As usual, the Antenna Survey encapsulates the important specifications on dozens of antennas, from stand-alone designs for high-precision commercial, defense and timing applications to micro antennas for integration into a variety of smartphones, UAVs and automobiles.
This year, 30 antenna manufacturers provide all the details on their products. Check out the 20-page survey supplement, sponsored this year by NovAtel.
A first-time gathering at ION GNSS+ gives mentors in the GNSS field an opportunity to help newcomers.
By Tracy Cozzens
Managing Editor
I had the privilege of attending a unique and special gathering at ION GNSS+ this past September. The meet-and-greet event was Women in PNT, sponsored by the Institute of Navigation (ION), Spirent Federal Systems and NovAtel.
“The idea to organize it cropped up last January in discussions with several ION colleagues, men and women, who recognize that both academia and industry in the navigation-related fields may not be considered as an attractive career path for young female professionals, due to insufficient mentorship and too few role models,” explained organizer Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska, who is ION president, a professor at The Ohio State University and contributor to GPS World. “The main goal of this, and future gatherings, is to show the younger women in PNT that balancing engineering or academic career with family life is quite possible, and that there are many of us out there who can mentor, advise and help.”
The guests were treated to a variety of delicious hors d’oeuvres shared with champagne, and plenty of time to get acquainted and network. But the highlight of the event was the stories and perspectives shared by the eight designated mentors, who discussed the tricky business of balancing home life and work life, including motherhood, despite building a career in a challenging male-dominated field.
More than 60 women attended the event. “I didn’t even realize we had that many ladies in the PNT community,” said Grace Gao, assistant professor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
“I hope that the younger women were able to network and take away some of the advice and wisdom provided,” said Francine Vannicola, mathematician, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory.
A poll conducted after the event showed that all attendees are likely to attend another such gathering, and everyone found it not only satisfactory, but valuable. One attendee commented, “I was trying to make a time sensitive career decision, and it was extremely helpful to discuss it with people who fully understand the field but have absolutely no involvement in the outcome. Their feedback was valuable and unbiased.”
The mentors also found the networking opportunity invaluable. “I got to talk to several fellow PNT women whom I would probably not have met in, say, the exhibition hall,” said Anna Jensen, professor, KTH Royal Institute of Technology. “Also, it was encouraging and motivating to hear the stories from the other panelists.”
“As I entered into engineering school, I felt a great deal of competition between the men and women,” said Ellen Hall, president, Spirent Federal Systems. “I felt it in the workplace, also. But at the women’s PNT event, it seemed like a support group where all guard could be let down, and everyone genuinely wanted to help one another.”
“As a young woman I often discounted specific women in science or engineering events because I didn’t think they were necessary and that I already knew how to run with the boys,” said Sandy Kennedy, director and chief engineer, NovAtel. “Now that I am older, I see the value in them because we do have specific challenges to face. And as a hiring manager, I also value these events to meet students and new grads.”
“I think this is a great event that brings women together not to be judged by their papers and presentations,” said Jade Morton, professor, Colorado State University. “Instead, we were all in the same room to support each other, and to share our own struggles and triumph. That was wonderful!”
