Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design
The Air Force has sharply recast the contest to build up to 22 additional satellites to fill out the GPS III constellation, slashing the maximum funding for the first phase of a “recompete” from $200 million per award to a scant $6 million.
By Inside GNSS
The 2015 edition of the European Navigation Conference (ENC) in Bordeaux last week found the continent’s GNSS community leaving troubles behind and looking to the future, where the world’s dependence on GNSS is greater, the risks higher, and the potential profits ever more tantalizing.
Speaking at the opening session dedicated to “the impact of GNSS on the economic sector,” Topos Cluster President Florence Ghiron answered the question in the simplest of terms: “We expect the GNSS market to grow and to include more and more industrial sectors.”
AsteRx4 OEM receiverSeptentrio has launched its next-generation dual-antenna GNSS receiver — the AsteRx4 OEM, a multi-frequency receiver that incorporates the latest GNSS tracking and positioning algorithms and operates with all available GNSS signals (GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo).
By Inside GNSS
NovAtel Inc. has announced the launch of the Relay RTK radio module, a docking station that provides radio connectivity for the company’s SMART6-L L-band–capable GNSS receiver.
The Coast Guard is poised to release a new cybersecurity strategy that includes a resilient position and navigation capability.
The new strategy, which is reportedly due to be announced any day, was previewed by Vice Adm. Charles Michel, the Coast Guards’ deputy commandant for operations, at a maritime cyber security conference in early March.
By Inside GNSS
Four leading lawmakers, apparently impatient with the Obama Administration’s less-than-urgent approach to assuring availability of critical navigation and timing resources, have sponsored a bill mandating the Department of Defense institute a backup for the Global Positioning System.
If approved, the National Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Resilience and Security Act of 2015 (H.R. 1678) would give the U.S. secretary of defense three years to establish, an alternative, land-based source for positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) data.
By Inside GNSS
The European GNSS Agency (GSA) unveiled its latest GNSS Market Report today (March 25, 2015) at the Munich Satellite Navigation Summit in Germany.
The fourth and most comprehensive in a series of GSA studies, the 80-page report describes current and projected GNSS receiver sales by volume and value and highlights market opportunities, technology trends, and future developments of GNSS.
By Inside GNSS
The United Launch Alliance successfully launched another U.S. Air Force GPS Block IIF satellite at 2:36 p.m. EDT today (March 25, 2015) from Cape Canaveral on board a Delta IV rocket.
The Air Force Second Space Operations Squadron (2 SOPS) indicates that IIF-9 (identified by space vehicle and pseudorandom noise code, respectively, as SVN-71/PRN-26) will replace SVN-35 (currently being operated in Launch, Anomaly Resolution and Disposal Operations or LADO status) in the B plane slot 1F.
By Inside GNSS
NovAtel graphicNovAtel Inc. has announced significant performance improvements to its PPP positioning solution.
TraceME with LoRa moduleKCS BV, based in Dordrecht, Netherlands, has extended its TraceME product line with an advanced module, targeted for worldwide mobility in the Internet of Things (IoT) era.
The latest development of the TraceME GPS/GPRS Track and Trace module will incorporate an RF location–based positioning solution with LoRa technology. According to the company, this combination enables “smart objects” to become even smarter, because LoRa enables long-range, battery-friendly communication in a wide variety of machine-to-machine (M2M) applications.
By Inside GNSS
Thalwil, Switzerland–based u-blox reported revenue and profit growth in its most recent annual report, driven by strong sales in its GNSS and wireless chipset and module business.
Consolidated revenue was CHF270 million (US$276.7 million) in 2014, a growth of nearly 23 percent compared to 2013 while net profit increased by 39.6 percent to CHF34.4 million (US$35.2 million), representing a 12.7 percent net profit margin for the year.
United Launch Alliance graphicFour GNSS satellites will be launched during the coming week: a GPS Block IIF, two full operational capability (FOC) Galileo spacecraft, and an Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) satellite.
By Inside GNSS
The Federal Register will publish on Monday (March 23, 2015) a solicitation for public comment regarding “potential plans” by the U.S. government to implement an enhanced Long Range Navigation (eLoran) system as a complementary positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) capability to GPS.
By Dee Ann Divis
