Launchpad: Network solutions, lidar and UAVs

A roundup of recent products in the GNSS and inertial positioning industry from the September 2021 issue of GPS World magazine.

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OEM

Network Expansion

Provides precision timing over fiber

Direct GPS-over-Fiber is a copper-free GNSS remote antenna that eliminates the need for costly power infrastructure. It uses power-over-fiber technology to distribute both the timing signal and power for the remote device. It is designed for telecommunication and data-center customers in need of scalable timing infrastructure solutions for outdoor remote antenna applications. It is fast and easy to install, with flexible, space-saving configurations that eliminate the need for power infrastructure at the remote end. The product makes network expansion achievable with a compact design and integrated transmitters, eliminating the need for multiple GPS antennas and maximizing the available space. It also extends the signal range between the antenna and the receiver.

Huber+Suhner, hubersuhner.com

Network timing platform

Small form factor with NTP and PTP functionality

The cost-effective EdgeSync network timing platform provides NTP and PTP grandmaster and boundary clock functionality for real-time edge applications. High performance, scalability, ease of use and manageability make EdgeSync suitable for data centers, finance, mobile edge computing, enterprise, smart grid, industrial IoT, process control and telecommunications. EdgeSync uses a multi-GNSS receiver (GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou and QZSS), PTP and Synchronous Ethernet as input references and generates PTP, SyncE, NTP and timing signals (10 MHz, 1 PPS and Time of Day message) as outputs. It also can provide IEEE 1588-2008 (PTP) grandmaster and boundary clock functionality and leverages unique PTP algorithms to deliver stringent timing for demanding, precise applications.

Orolia, orolia.com

Inertial measurement units

With PIC technology and new accelerometers

The P-1750 IMU and the P-1725 IMU complement the previously released P-1775 IMU to create a full line of IMUs with high-performance accelerometers and photonic integrated chip (PIC) technology. The P-series IMUs are offered in the same compact IMU housing design, and now offer more dynamic and accurate sensor performance, delivering improved navigation capability and more environmental robustness in vibration and shock capability for more challenging applications. PIC technology features an integrated planar optical chip that replaces individual fiber-optic components to simplify production and increase reliability. The accelerometers used in the P-series IMUs offer greater sensitivity and accuracy in their dynamic ranges. The IMUs are designed for challenging applications on land, sea and air, including autonomous trucks and people movers, drones, autonomous underwater vehicles and platform stabilization. Industries include transportation, military, agriculture, construction and mining.

KVH Industries, kvh.com

Helical Antennas

Dual-purpose, dual-band GNSS and active Iridium

The HC860 and HC860E active GNSS/Iridium antennas are designed for precise positioning, covering the GPS/QZSS-L1/L2, GLONASS-G1/G2, Galileo-E1 and BeiDou-B1 bands, including regional SBAS. The antennas also support active Iridium reception in the 1616.0-1626.5 MHz band. The HC860 housed and HC860E embedded helical antennas are designed for high-accuracy positioning. They are packaged in a light, compact form factor suitable for a variety of applications, including autonomous vehicle navigation (land, sea and air), handheld survey devices, automotive positioning, timing and other precise-positioning applications.

Tallysman Wireless, tallysman.com

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SURVEYING & MAPPING

Tablet

Rugged, modular and customizable

The Panasonic Toughbook G2 is a fully rugged 2-in-1 detachable tablet with optional keyboard that features an innovative modular design and user-removable expansion packs (xPAKs). With three modular expansion areas and up to 36 xPAK combinations, users can customize the Toughbook G2 to suit their needs with options including a 4G LTE-A multi-carrier with GPS or a dedicated U-blox NEO M8N receiver. The device is backward compatible with most Toughbook 20 and G1 docks. It has a 10.1-inch display, an Intel Core i5 and i7 vPro processor and runs on Windows 10 Pro. It has an 18.5-hour battery life. The 2-in-1 detachable design allows users to operate the device both in laptop and tablet modes.

Panasonic System Solutions, na.panasonic.com

Multibeam sounder

With GNSS/INS for bathymetry

The WASSP S3r multibeam sounder combines data from a multibeam sounder transducer with 224 beams covering a 120° swath port to starboard along with position, heading and motion to create an accurate survey situations and environmental conditions. WASSP S3r is able to survey areas up to 10 times faster than a single-beam sounder. The S3r uses an SBG Ellipse-D Inertial Navigation System for its RTK + INS. The Ellipse-D allows the sounder to create accurately positioned 3D bathymetric representations of the seafloor, down to centimeter accuracy with minimal passes. WASSP has also incorporated the Ellipse-D into its S3Pr portable survey package. The SBG Ellipse-D was able to fit into a covered housing that allows quick setup on small vessels and interface with the WASSP DRX processing unit and CDX software. Ellipse-D integrates a dual-antenna, multi-band GNSS receiver, and is capable of delivering precise heading as well as centimeter-level position accuracy in challenging GNSS conditions.

ENL group, enl.co.nz; SBG Systems, sbg-systems.com

Lidar System

Deployment-ready lidar perception system

Voyage is a plug-and-play lidar perception system that delivers highly accurate object detection, tracking and classification capabilities. The deployment kit is equipped with SENSR2 software, lidar sensors and a lidar processing unit. Voyage provides volumetric profiling and motion-prediction capabilities, regardless of lighting conditions, and can collect and process data from up to four sensors for insights across the sensor coverage zones. Voyage does not capture, show or store any biometric and otherwise identifying data to maximize the protection of people’s privacy when installed as part of smart-city and security systems. The company’s sensor-agnostic perception software is available worldwide and is deployed by top-tier organizations such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, the Chattanooga Department of Transportation and Emart, among others.

Seoul Robotics, www.seoulrobotics.org

Surveying machine

High-precision robot for surveyors

The TinySurveyor is a high-precision instrument for the surveying and infrastructure industries, able to execute large tasks up to 10 times faster than traditional methods. The machine pairs with a GNSS receiver to accomplish large-scale stake-outs, road pre-marking, as-built surveys and topographic surveys. Its ability to mark out existing data or collect new data at high speed and with high accuracy makes the TinySurveyor suitable for repetitive, time-consuming and labor-intensive tasks. With a GNSS receiver, repeatable results ensure accuracy of 1-2 cm. The TinySurveyor integrates with any GNSS receiver and has been tested with units from Topcon, Trimble and Leica.

TinyMobileRobots, tinymobilerobots.com

Redistricting maps

For local and congressional planning

Maptitude for Redistricting 2021 is a specialized tool for political redistricting that enables state legislatures, political and public interest groups, local governments and private citizens to create and advocate redistricting plans that meet their goals, adhere to legal requirements, and stand up to public scrutiny and legal challenges. Unlike a general-purpose GIS, Maptitude for Redistricting streamlines the plan creation process for all types of political boundary definitions and provides all of the calculations and reports needed. It is suitable for congressional redistricting as well as state legislative districts, city councils and local school board districts.

Caliper, caliper.com

Geospatial analytics

Powers mission-critical geospatial applications

With the Luciad 2021 platform, defense, aviation, maritime and other organizations can develop effective and reliable web applications. LuciadFusion, an all-in-one server solution for geospatial data management, has two new types of data streaming, resulting in faster streaming of imagery and point cloud data. LuciadRIA supports Web Assembly to bring desktop-like calculations to the browser. Luciad 2021 also features enhancements to software development kits for desktop and on-board vehicle applications. LuciadLightspeed seamlessly integrates into JavaFX-based applications, making it easier to embed its map components into user interfaces, and now provides for high-resolution map printing. LuciadCPillar, an API for C++ and C# developers, was updated with labeling support and other new features.

Hexagon, hexagon.com

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UAV

Transponder

Integrated GPS for maximum safety

The Ping200XR integrates the capability of the Ping200X TSO Certified Mode S ADS-B OUT transponder with the high-integrity truFYX TSO-certified GPS position source into a single enclosure. The integration simplifies installation and allows the customer to choose between the installed GPS antenna or one provided with the Ping200XR. The integrated GPS ensures maximum safety by providing Source Integrity Level (SIL) 3 RTCA DO-229D and TSO-C145e Class Beta 1 performance, a requirement for Mode S and ADS-B airspace access, and for reception and processing by certified avionics and traffic collision avoidance systems in other aircraft as well as air traffic control. SIL 3 performance is not available from non-aviation certified GPS receivers, which often are used as an autopilot navigation source.

uAvionix, uavionix.com

Lidar for Small Drones

Lightweight payload provides high-resolution capabilities

The RTL-450 lidar sensor incorporates a lightweight MEMS mirror and a precision navigation system to generate accurate data for demanding aerial surveying missions. The high-resolution, three-dimensional point clouds it creates enables operators to conduct advanced analytics of geographic and manmade features. Made in the United States, the RTL-450 incorporates patented lidar sensor technology. It weighs just over 4 pounds and is designed to operate independently of a drone platform, providing great flexibility for drone integration. Its modular design facilitates quick, efficient integration onto user-selected platforms.

RedTail Lidar Systems, redtaillidar.com

Laser scanner

Ready for corridor mapping

The RIEGL VUX-240 is a lightweight airborne laser scanner, especially designed for use on UAS/UAV/RPAS and small manned airplanes or helicopters. With its wide field of view of 75° and a data acquisition rate of up to 1.8 MHz, the instrument is suitable for high-point-density corridor mapping applications. The VUX-240 uses Riegl’s Waveform-Lidar technology, allowing echo digitization and online waveform processing. Multi-target resolution is the basis for penetrating even dense foliage. A continuously rotating polygon mirror wheel enables scan speeds of up to 400 lines per second, for efficiently covering large areas when operated from fast UAVs or aircrafts. The scanner stores 1 terabyte of data internally and is equipped with interfaces for an external IMU/GNSS system to control up to four external cameras.

Riegl, riegl.com

Heavy-Lift Drone

Flies 2.5 hours with 4-kg payload

The Carrier H6 Hybrid is a heavy-lift gas-electric hybrid drone powered by either the H2400 (Carrier H6 HE+) or H5000 (Carrier H6 HL) hybrid drone generator. The Carrier H6 Hybrid HE+ is equipped with the H2400 generator providing 2400W of continuous power. The recommended payload is 4 kg allowing for up to 2.5 hours of flight. The maximum payload of 6 kg allows up to 1.5 hours of flight. The Carrier H6 Hybrid HL has a maximum payload capacity of 15 kg and can be configured to carry more robust scientific-grade sensors, such as multispectral cameras, professional DSLRs for cinematography and lidar. The H6 Hybrid HL also can be used in heavy-lift applications involving asset transportation and delivery, agricultural spraying and search and rescue.

Harris Aerial, harrisaerial.com

Industrial drone system

Autonomous ops from a dock

The PowerVision True Unmanned Aerial System combines the PowerEgg X 8K drone, PowerEgg Dock and the PowerVision Cloud web-based software platform. The integration provides a turnkey solution for remote, autonomous data-collection missions. With the system, drones can be deployed at scale as data-acquisition infrastructure, instead of tools to be operated on individual missions. Powered by artificial intelligence, the system streamlines the drone’s takeoff, flight, dynamic mission and return to the charging dock autonomously. The system weighs 34.8 pounds (15.8 kg) in a 570 x 400 x 250-millimeter form factor, allowing it to be deployed by a single person without special tools or equipment. The solution can be used for powerline inspections, environmental compliance, asset inspection, facility security, GIS, surveying and mapping.

PowerVision Tech, powervision.me

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TRANSPORTATION

Ephemeris Service

Minimizes onboard resource use

The StarCourse service provides real-time extended ephemeris data for GNSS chipsets in connected mobile devices, giving them a headstart in determining position accurately and quickly. For devices with limited connectivity, typical extended ephemeris solutions have provided a headstart with 7¬–14 days of ephemeris data. StarCourse provides a 50% reduction in RAM requirements, 90% reduction in CPU cycles, and high location accuracy. Full data customization is provided to StarCourse subscribers, allowing them to create optimal solutions for their needs. The service enables autonomous positioning on connected GNSS IoT devices including asset tracking, wearables, in-dash navigation and mobile devices. For situations where accuracy is paramount, StarCourse Premium provides ultra-precise predicted ephemeris for the first 24 hours.

Rx Networks, rxnetworks.com

Fleet management

Designed to reduce waste and costs

Trailer management solution FleetLocate captures data at the trailer level and translates it into actionable business intelligence to increase trailer productivity while reducing waste and costs. Telematics devices deliver core trailer insights that help automate yard checks and maximize use. Advanced trailer technologies are available, such as solar power management, tethered/untethered configurations, IntelliScan cargo sensing, cargo image capture and retrieval, door sensors, liftgate battery monitoring and more.

Spireon, spireon.com