Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design
Septentrio 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
European space officials and engineering teams heaved a collective sigh of relief as the second attempt to launch a pair of full operational capability (FOC) Galileo satellites appears to have succeeded yesterday (March 27, 2015).
The EU’s Galileo satellite navigation system now has eight satellites in orbit, including four in-orbit validation (IOV) satellites launched in 2011 and 2012 and the first two FOC spacecraft placed into an anomalous orbit last August.
By Inside GNSS
The incorporation of GNSS and inertial technologies is helping drive an explosion of systems development and applications of unmanned systems. On Tuesday, September 29, Inside GNSS and NovAtel presented a 90-minute web seminar showcasing some of these applications, including the use of remote sensing technologies to assess pest populations in commercial crops and to conduct infrastructure inspections, with the aid of air and ground vehicles.
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
NovAtel Inc. has announced significant performance improvements to its PPP positioning solution.
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.
New delays and higher costs should be expected for both the GPS III satellite program and GPS-OCX, the new GPS ground system, federal watchdogs warned in a new report.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) said both programs are in the process of rebaselining, that is, resetting their estimated schedules and costs. In the case of the Next Generation Operational Control System (GPS OCX), which is essential for full operation of the new GPS III satellites, the changes could be significant.
By Inside GNSS
Spectrum-related tensions reemerged during a workshop on Thursday (March 12, 2015) organized to gather feedback on a testing plan to help protect GPS receivers.
The plan is part of the GPS Adjacent-Band Compatibility (ABC) assessment — a wide-ranging effort to determine the power levels at which services operating in frequencies next those used by GPS and other GNSS systems can broadcast signals without causing interference to GPS signals.
By Inside GNSS
Nowhere has the fact that GNSS can guide things besides military weapons and transport manifested itself more profoundly than in agriculture.
While Google and automotive manufacturers struggle to figure out how to put autonomous vehicles on the highway, farmers have been using GNSS for well over a decade to guide equipment through their fields — along with a host of other ag-related, site-specific applications.
Indeed, GNSS — along with an array of other high-tech resources — is transforming agriculture at an accelerating rate.
By Inside GNSS
Last January, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) announced a new invitation to tender for the role of Galileo service operator (GSOp). Speaking at the recent EU Space Policy Conference in Brussels, GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides called it the largest contract ever to be awarded under the Galileo program.
“It will shape the future of Galileo,” he said.
By Peter Gutierrez
