GPS L5 Signal Goes on the Air April 10

U.S. Air Force officials are moving quickly to turn on the new civil GPS L5 signal after lengthy delays due to technical problems had brought the program close to an International Telecommunications Union (ITU) deadline for transmitting on the frequency.

The Air Force plans to begin transmitting the signal at 5 a.m. (PDT) on April 10 using the Block II R-20(M) satellite launched March 24. An L5 signal demonstration is planned the same day, organized by the GPS Wing and SRI International. The L5 spectrum will be received and plotted at the SRI’s 150-foot “big dish” antenna facility in the hills over looking Stanford University, California.

earthmine Launches 3D Mapping System Driven by GPS, Inertial

Privacy rebellions such as recently drove a Google Street View crew from Broughton, England, or security-oriented legislation that would require blurred features or position accuracy in commercial imagery is just part of the market environment for 3-D mapping company earthmine, Inc., which is moving out of beta mode into full-fledged operations.

NavCom Technology Partners with Astrium Services in Europe

NavCom Technology Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Deere & Company, and Astrium Services have formed a strategic partnership to deliver precise positioning solutions throughout Europe.

An Expanding CAST Navigation Moves to New Facilities

CAST Navigation LLC is relocating to expanded facilities as a result of increased demand for the company’s GPS simulators, GPS/INS navigation test equipment, and embedded GPS/inertial (EGI) integration tools.

Effective April 20, the new physical location for the CAST Navigation team will be: One Highwood Drive, Suite 100, Tewksbury, MA 01876. Phone contact is 978-858-0130. Faxes may be sent to 978-858-0170; website, <www.castnav.com>.

Geotagging: u-blox Buys Geotate

In a €5.5-million cash deal, u-blox AG, of Thalwil, Switzerland, has acquired Geotate B.V. and its patented technology and products in the area of software GPS and geotagging GPS.

The acquisition will enable u-blox to expand its position in consumer markets with geotagging solutions for digital camera manufacturers and other portable device manufacturers.

What Race? What Competition? The Four GNSS Systems

Munich’s high-level satnav summit the first week in March opened with a plenary titled, “The Worldwide Race in GNSS” and closed with a panel, “The Competition among the Big Four.”

Despite the provocative session titles, few speakers were willing to admit that either a race or a competition was under way in the GNSS world.

SSTL Leads Team Developing GNSS-Based Remote Sensing of Sea State

Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) will lead a British project to exploit signals from GPS and other GNSS satellites that are reflected from the Earth for remote sensing purposes.

The project will investigate a prototype instrument capable of measuring the roughness of the sea and soil moisture content, providing data for atmospheric science and for operational ocean and weather forecasting.

OnPOZ Offers Free ArcPad GNSS Driver Extension

Montreal, Quebec, Canada–based OnPOZ Precision Positioning has released, GNSS Driver for ArcPad, a new extension to the ESRI product that allows GNSS post-processing using different GNSS receiver brands.

The receiver-independent extension can significantly improve GNSS/GIS data accuracy and reliability, logging real-time positions, metadata, and all GNSS observations in order to increase the reliability and accuracy of GNSS positions by post-processing ESRI Shapefiles.

GPS Satellite with L5 Payload Launches Successfully

GPS program managers and users — especially the U.S. civil aviation community — can breathe a sign of relief following the successful launch Tuesday (March 24) of a satellite carrying a demonstration payload of the new L5 signal.

Built by the Lockheed Martin Company, the modernized Block II replenishment spacecraft, GPS IIR-20(M), is moving toward plane B, slot 2 to replace space vehicle number (SVN) 30. If all goes well, U.S. Air Force controllers expect to set the satellite healthy for navigation users worldwide next month.

Among other signals and capabilities, the IIR-20(M) will be the first to transmit the new GPS civil signal centered on 1176.45MHz (±12 MHz) within the protected aeronautical radionavigation service (ARNS) band. This so-called L5 signal will provide a second safety-of-life signal that meets the technical requirements for enabling aircraft to make precision landings in high multipath environments.

GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Compass: What GNSS Race? What Competition

(This story appears in the "GNSS World" department in the March-April 2009 issue of Inside GNSS.)

Munich’s high-level satnav summit the first week in March opened with a plenary titled, “The Worldwide Race in GNSS” and closed with a panel, “The Competition among the Big Four.”