Russian navigating devices on sale

From correspondents in Moscow
May 24, 2007

NAVIGATING devices using Russian satellites will appear in the shops this year as the first alternative to the widely used GPS network of the United States, officials said overnight.

"The individual devices receiving signals from Glonass will appear in shops in our country by the end of this year," Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said.

The Glonass satellite network, which is also used by the Russian military, was set up to compete with the US' GPS network, which is widely used around the world, and Europe's planned Galileo system.

But development of the system has lagged behind schedule, and Mr Ivanov conceded that it would only have global coverage - with a planned total of 24 satellites - by 2009.

The Russian devices, which will also receive signals from the GPS network, can be used by planes, ships, armoured vehicles and trains, as well as by individual users, Mr Ivanov said.


Source: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21785808-1702,00.html

Space official says Glonass to equal precision of GPS by 2011

MOSCOW REGION, May 24 (RIA Novosti) - A senior space official said Thursday Russia's Glonass global positioning system should reach the same precision level as the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS) by 2011.

Glonass is designed for both military and civilian use, allowing users to identify their positions in real time.

A deputy director of the Federal Space Agency, Yury Nosenko, speaking at a news conference with top designers of Glonass in the Moscow Region, said: "Our aim is to improve the precision of the Glonass system's operations for civilian users down to one meter by 2011. The American GPS system is already working at this precision level."

When the improved Glonass-K satellites with a 10-year service life are complete, the system will be as good as GPS, and users will be able to use both systems, Nosenko said.

A total of $380 million in 2007 federal budget funds was allocated for Glonass, compared to last year's $181 million. The first launch under the Glonass program took place October 12, 1982, but the system was only formally launched on September 24, 1993.

The satellites currently in use are of two modifications - Glonass and its updated version Glonass-M. The latter has a longer service life of seven years and is equipped with updated antenna feeder systems and an additional navigation frequency for civilian users.

Nikolai Testoyedov, the head of NPO Reshetnev, a state-controlled company that builds satellites for Glonass, told the news conference that six Glonass-M satellites will be put into orbit by Proton carrier rockets by the end of 2007. Another six satellites will be added to the Glonass system in 2008, and the first two improved Glonass-K satellites will be launched in 2009.

The future modification, Glonass-K, is an entirely new model based on a non-pressurized platform, standardized to the specifications of the previous models' platform, Express-1000.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20070524/66028312.html

Ukraine and Russia to cooperate in GLONASS

RBC, 24.05.2007, Kiev 09:53:46.Ukraine and Russia have discussed the prospects of cooperation in setting up ground infrastructure to make it possible for Russian and Ukrainian consumers to use GLONASS and other navigation satellite systems, Ukrainian National Space Agency General Director Yury Alekseyev told journalists today following a space industry meeting in Moscow on May 17-18.

According to Alekseyev, practical steps have been planned to start work on establishing ground infrastructure, including a trial launch of a fragment of the system on Ukraine and Russia's bordering territories, Crimea and the Krasnodar region, as early as 2008.

Source: http://www.rbcnews.com/free/20070524095346.shtml

Putin makes Glonass navigation system free for customers

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed Friday a decree on the Glonass navigation system to provide the service free for customers, the Kremlin press service said.

Glonass is a Russian version of the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), which is designed for both military and civilian use, and allows users to identify their positions in real time. The system can also be used in geological prospecting.

“Access to civilian navigation signals of global navigation satellite system Glonass is provided to Russian and foreign consumers free of charge and without limitations,” the presidential decree reads.

In line with the decree, satellite navigation equipment bought for federal bodies of executive power and organizations subordinate to them should operate using Glonass signals.

Putin charged the Federal Space Agency with coordinating work to maintain, develop and use the system for civilian and commercial needs.

The head of the space agency said in April Russia will bring the number of satellites comprising its Glonass navigation system to 18 by the end of 2007.

Anatoly Perminov said then a full orbital group of 24 satellites will be ready for global coverage by the end of 2009, but even with 18 satellites in orbit it will be able to start providing services for military and civilian users, covering Russian territory.

A total of $380 million has been appropriated for Glonass from the federal budget in 2007, and $181 million in 2006.

The space agency head also said that Glonass will be fully integrated with the U.S. GPS and European Galileo satellite navigation systems.

“We will ensure the compatibility and complimentary use of the Russian Glonass system with the American GPS, and later with the European Galileo systems,” he said.

The first launch under the Glonass program took place October 12, 1982, but the system was only formally launched September 24, 1993.

The satellites currently in use are of two modifications - Glonass and its updated version Glonass-M. The latter has a longer service life of seven years and is equipped with updated antenna feeder systems and an additional navigation frequency for civilian users.

A future modification, Glonass-K, is an entirely new model based on a non-pressurized platform, standardized to the specifications of the previous models’ platform, Express-1000.

Glonass-Ks’ estimated service life has been increased to 10-12 years, and a third, “civilian” L-range frequency has been added.

Source: RIA Novosti

First Russian PDA For Military Purposes

Russian research-and-production company “Technica-Service” has announced its plans for 2007 – launching production of a palm computer “Kulon” in hardened shell and with embedded GPS receiver.

First Russian portable digital assistant “for military purposes” is based upon PX270 processor with frequency of 624 MHz. The device also has a VGA-display, and palm owners will be able to choose between two operational systems: Windows CE.net 5.0 and Windows Mobile 2005.

GPS receiver is already built in the palm, and developers claim to produce PDAs with receivers for both GPS and GLONASS navigation systems.

However, developers said nothing about whether their device will have any components, produced in Russia.

Source: http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/3968/

Ivanov urges measures to enhance competitiveness of GLONASS

SYKTYVKAR, May 15 (Itar-Tass) -- Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov has urged safeguarding Russia’s interests in space exploration and development, including the competitiveness of the GLONASS satellite navigation system.

“We must and we shall work seriously on our GLONASS system,” Ivanov told a student audience at a college in Syktyvkar.

“We should literally elbow our way through to safeguard our interests. We should work really hard, if we want to be competitive,” Ivanov said, adding that the GPS navigation system was already operational and its European counterpart Galileo was in the creation phase.

Source: http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=11529482&PageNum=0

NovAtel Inc. Licensed to Sell Galileo Receivers

CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- May 14, 2007 -- NovAtel Inc. (NASDAQ: NGPS), a precise positioning technology company, has received a license valid for 10 years from the European Space Agency (ESA), which allows NovAtel to sell receivers that track Galileo signals. Galileo is the European Union's state-of-the-art Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), which is expected to be fully operable in 2010 to 2012 with up to 30 satellites orbiting the earth. It is designed for both civilian and government purposes and will be controlled and operated by civil management.

NovAtel's EuroPak-15a production standard receiver allows customers to not only receive GPS L1/L5 signals, but to also add the additional capability for Galileo L1/E5a tracking. "NovAtel's 10-year license granted by ESA is renewable, and allows NovAtel to sell Galileo/GIOVE-A capable receivers. This full license replaces a previous temporary agreement granted by ESA in March of this year. We are now able to move forward with commercial sales of Galileo-capable receivers," said Tony Murfin, NovAtel's Vice President, Business Development. "The EuroPak-15a is able to receive signals from the initial GIOVE-A test satellite, and will also support future planned In-Orbit Validation (IOV) signal structures."

NovAtel received this license based on its participation in the Galileo Receiver Chain (GRC) program. NovAtel has contributed to the Galileo development program since 2000, and the EuroPak-15a receivers were initially developed under a contract granted by the Canadian Space Agency in 2004. Recently, NovAtel announced that it was the first company outside Europe to be accepted as a Full Member of Galileo Services, a non-profit organization made up of a consortium of businesses and agencies involved with Galileo satellite system downstream technology and services.

About NovAtel

NovAtel Inc. (NASDAQ: NGPS) is a leading provider of precision Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) components and subsystems that afford its customers rapid integration of precise positioning technology. The Company's mission is to provide exceptional return on investment and outstanding service to our customers. An ISO 9001 certified company, NovAtel is focused on developing quality OEM products including receivers, antennas, enclosures and software that are integrated into high precision positioning applications worldwide. These applications include surveying, Geographical Information System (GIS) mapping, precision agriculture machine guidance, port automation, mining, marine and defence industries. NovAtel's reference receivers are also at the core of national aviation ground networks in the USA, Japan, Europe, China and India. The Company is committed to providing its customers with advanced positioning technology through significant R&D investment focusing on the modernized Global Positioning System (GPS), the revitalized Russian GLONASS and the emerging European Galileo satellite systems, as well as the integration of additional complementary technologies such as Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs). For more information, visit www.novatel.com.

Certain statements in this news release, including those about the Company's future plans and intentions, future performance and market acceptance of its Galileo technology and expected shipments into the Galileo system, long-term growth prospects, levels of activity or other future events, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts but rather on management's current expectations regarding NovAtel's future growth, results of operations, performance, future capital and other expenditures, competitive advantages, business prospects and opportunities. Wherever possible, words such as ''anticipate'', ''believe'', ''expect'', ''may'', ''could'', ''will'', ''potential'', ''intend'', ''estimate'', ''should'', ''plan'', ''predict'', "forecast" or the negative or other variations of these words, or similar words or phrases, have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements, including operating results of the Company's joint venture Point, Inc. ("Point"), impact and timing of large orders, U.S. dollar to Canadian dollar exchange rate fluctuations, establishing and maintaining effective distribution channels, certification and market acceptance of NovAtel's new products, credit risks of customers and the Company's joint venture Point, pricing pressures in the market and other competitive factors, maintaining technological leadership, timing of revenue recognition in connection with certain contracts, the ability to maintain supply of products from subcontract manufacturers, the procurement of components to build products, product defects, the impact of industry consolidations, vulnerability to general economic, market and business conditions, competition, environmental and other actions by governmental authorities, reliance on key personnel and other factors described in the Company's Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2005 and other SEC filings, many of which are beyond the control of NovAtel. These factors should be considered carefully and undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and NovAtel assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances.


Contacts:
NovAtel Inc.
Tony Murfin
(403) 295-4512

NovAtel Inc.
Sonia Ross
(403) 295-4532
Website: www.novatel.com

SOURCE: NovAtel Inc.

Topcon to Acquire Sokkia

Mar 24, 2007
GPS World

Topcon Corp. announced it has come to a "basic agreement" to acquire Sokkia Company Limited (Sokkia). If approved by the Japanese Fair Trade Commission (FTC), Sokkia will become a Topcon subsidiary and will be renamed Sokkia Topcon. Because both companies are headquartered in Japan, the transaction is subject to approval by the Japanese FTC with respect to anti-trust regulation. Topcon states that further details will be released after the Japanese FTC has commented on the proposed acquisition.

The announcement states the reason for the merger of the two companies is to maintain an edge in the increasingly competitive worldwide surveying instruments market. Competitors Leica Geosystems AG and Trimble Navigation Ltd. have been acquiring companies to increase market strength for some time. The announcement also gives increased competition from Chinese manufacturers as another driver for the Sokkia acquisition.

Surveying instruments (Positioning Business) is the largest business segment of Topcon Corp., as it produced approximately $400 million in revenue in fiscal year 2006 (ending March 2006). Other business segments include Opthalmic/Medical, Industrial, and Optical Devices instruments. Companywide revenues for FY2006 were approximately $913 million. According to the company, it implemented a mid-term growth strategy in FY2006 targeting annual revenue of $640 million for the Positioning Business segment.

Sokkia's sole business is surveying instruments. Its worldwide FY2006 revenues for the same period were approximately $187 million.

Both companies have formidable worldwide distribution channels. No details have been released about how the acquisition will affect the two channels, although the announcement mentions that the Sokkia brand will be maintained for an interim period.

NovAtel Role. An area of ambiguity is Sokkia's joint venture with NovAtel, Inc., of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. NovAtel designs GNSS technology that Sokkia incorporates into its GNSS surveying products through a joint venture named Point, Inc., established in 1999. Sokkia owns 51 percent of Point while NovAtel owns 49 percent.

Topcon has a solid investment in GNSS technology, which began with its acquisition of the former Javad Positioning Systems in July 2000. Since FY2004, Topcon has experienced record revenues for each year and strong growth in the GNSS receiver sector, while becoming a leader in producing receivers that use both GPS and Russian GLONASS satellite signals.

Following the Topcon announcement, NovAtel CEO Jon Ladd responded that "NovAtel and Sokkia have existing contracts in place under which NovAtel develops and supplies GPS technology and products to our joint venture Point and ultimately to Sokkia. We do not expect the proposed combination of Topcon with Sokkia to affect our business relationship with Sokkia, for the foreseeable future. We continue to work with Sokkia management to develop new GNSS technology that will be incorporated into the Point/Sokkia product family." According to NovAtel, the Point agreement is effective until July 2009.

Furthermore, Hitoshi Ito, president of Sokkia Co., Ltd., stated, "We value our relationship with NovAtel and do not expect there will be a material change to our relationship."

According to NovAtel, the Point venture accounted for approximately $9 million of NovAtel's $67 million total annual revenue in FY2006.

Source: http://sc.gpsworld.com/gpssc/article/articleDetail.jsp;jsessionid=GHjkDVyTgvQmYPPVybyGxR7mGhCYWG3pJYfz1mSnhrTKbXKnj6Rv!284891640?id=414512

Russia in talks with other countries on joint Glonass use

MOSCOW, December 5 (RIA Novosti) - Russia is negotiating with other countries on the possible joint use of Russia's global positioning satellite system Glonass, the head of the Russian Space Agency said Tuesday.

Glonass, a Russian version of the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), is designed for both military and civilian purposes, and allows users to identify their positions in real time. It can also be used in geological prospecting.

"We are in active talks with India, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and other countries on the joint use of the Glonass space system," Anatoly Perminov said.

"As far as other countries are concerned, we are primarily in talks with the United States and the European Space Agency to prepare agreements on the use of Glonass jointly with GPS and Galileo [satellite navigation systems]," Perimov said.

He said Glonass has been in an intensified stage of development since the president urged for active work on the system.

"The country's leadership is paying particular attention to the development of the system," Perminov said. "The Russian president personally set the task of not only actively developing it [the system], but also putting it into operation as soon as possible."

Last December President Vladimir Putin told the government that he wanted Glonass ready by 2008, as had been originally planned.

"We hope that by late 2007 or early 2008 we will have 18 satellites in orbit, and by the end of 2009 a full orbital group of 24 satellites," Perminov said.

In November Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said Russia will lift all precision restrictions, from the start of 2007, in the use of Glonass to enable accurate and unlimited commercial use of the military-controlled global positioning system. Current restrictions limit the accuracy for civilian users of Glonass to 30 meters.

Source: http://en.rian.ru/world/20061205/56499172.html

Glonass Cheaper To Build Than GPS Says Putin

by Staff Writers
Moscow (RIA Novosti) Mar 13, 2007

The global navigation system Glonass should be cheaper and of better quality than the GPS system, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday. "You know what attention I pay to Glonass, and I hope relevant attention will be paid to it," Putin told Cabinet members.

Glonass is a Russian version of the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), which is designed for both military and civilian use, and allows users to identify their positions in real time. The system can also be used in geological prospecting.

In December 2005, President Vladimir Putin ordered the system to be ready by 2008, and First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said Glonass would be available to domestic users for military as well civilian purposes by the end of 2007.

The head of Russia's Federal Space Agency, Anatoly Perminov, said earlier that Russia is also in talks with the United States and the European Space Agency to prepare agreements on the use of Glonass jointly with the GPS and Galileo satellite navigation systems.

The agency plans to have 18 satellites in orbit by late 2007 or early 2008, and a full orbital group of 24 satellites by the end of 2009, he said.

[img]Ivanov said late last year that Russia will lift all precision restrictions on Glonass beginning in 2007, which will enable accurate and unlimited commercial use of the military-controlled global positioning system.

Current restrictions limit the accuracy for civilian users of Glonass to 30 meters.

The first launch under the Glonass program took place October 12, 1982, but the system was only formally launched September 24, 1993.

Andrei Kozlov, the head of the Reshetnev Research and Production Center in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia's leading spacecraft manufacturer, said earlier the Glonass system currently has 13 satellites in orbit.

The satellites currently in use are of two modifications - Glonass and its updated version Glonass-M. Glonass-M has a longer service life of seven years and is equipped with updated antenna feeder systems and an additional navigation frequency for civilian users.

A future modification, Glonass-K, is an entirely new model based on a non-pressurized platform, standardized to the specifications of the previous models' platform, Express-1000.

Glonass-Ks' estimated service life has been increased to 10-12 years, and a third "civilian" L-range frequency has been added.

Tests on Glonass-K satellites are scheduled for 2007.

Source: http://www.gpsdaily.com/reports/Glonass_Cheaper_To_Build_Than_GPS_Says_Putin_999.html

Europe’s GPS Loses Signal

EU satellite navigation crisis deepens as deadline nears.
May 9, 2007

By Peter Purton

The European Union is scrambling to find a way to save its planned satellite navigation system, dubbed Galileo, as it becomes clear that members of the consortium managing the project are failing to reach agreement in the eleventh hour of an approaching deadline.

On Monday, consortium members appeared far from an agreement, saying they would rather stay away from the project than be faced with financial risks without guarantees of returns. It now looks inevitable that the consortium will lose the European Union’s backing, coming as a May 10 deadline nears to set a framework and appoint a leader.

The development is significant because Galileo is Europe’s answer to the United States’ Global Positioning System (GPS) and Russia’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), both military funded and controlled.

A deadline had been set for Aena, Alcatel-Lucent, Deutsche Telekom, EADS, Finmeccanica, Hispasat, Inmarsat, and Thales to seek agreement on a legal structure and a chief executive (see Europe’s GPS System at Risk).

Now it appears as if few alternatives remain except to scrap the project or inject significant new public funds into it. Neither option is likely to appeal to European leaders as the first would mean a major image fiasco and the second a very unpopular use of tax money.

“Our view is that the current scenario to put Galileo into place cannot work,” said Michael Cercone, spokesman for European Commission transport commissioner Jacques Barrot. The Commission is due to present alternative plans to European transport ministers May 16. As well as pumping more money into it or dumping it altogether, another option would be to take over the project directly.

Initially the European initiative was opposed by the U.S. government, but opposition has since been relaxed. If Galileo goes ahead it will be the first non-government satellite positioning system and will be compatible with both GPS and GLONASS.

Galileo has been in planning since 1999 and it had been hoped that it would be in operation by 2008. Even if it does somehow go ahead it now looks as if a fully operational commercial service may not be available before 2014. And the initial hope that the public would pay only a third of the anticipated costs of 3.6 billion euros ($4.9 billion) looks lost.

Source: http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=22230&hed=Europe%E2%80%99s+GPS+Loses+Signal&sector=Industries&subsector=Communications

European GPS rival transmits first navigation data

Bangalore (India) - Galileo, a European project that aims to create a civilian global navigation infrastructure, has reached a major milestone as the European Space Agency (ESA) today reported that the Giove-A satellite has transmitted the first navigation message.

Giove-A is the first of 30 satellites that the ESA and the European Commission plan to deploy at an altitude of 23,222 km to build “Galileo”, a global navigation system that is compatible with the American GPS and the Russian GLONASS. However, while Galileo will be compatible with these two older systems, it does not have a military background and is intended to secure Europe’s independence from GPS and GLONASS.

According to the ESA, a first navigation message including a navigation signal and a navigation message was uplinked to Giove-A on May 2 from the Guildford ground station. The organization explained that the message was similar to those that will be sent by the operational Galileo system and contained the information needed to measure the distance from the satellite to the user receiver


Illustration of the Giove-A satellite

Giove-A has been transmitting general signals since January 12 of last year, ESA said.

According to the organization, Galileo will be able to provide navigation data with an accuracy of about 1 meter or about 3 ft. When fully installed, Galileo will consist of 30 satellite, organized at an inclination of the orbital planes of 56 degrees. 27 of the satellites will be operational and three will act as active spares. ESA expects that the navigation system will provide coverage up to the North Cape.

Galileo is expected to be fully deployed by 2012, with operation beginning in 2008. Compared to today’s GPS, Galileo will also have a commercial component, allowing technology firms to create fee-based, “value-added” services for the system.

Source: http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/31911/113/

Switzerland Upgrades its Nationwide Positioning Network with Trimble GNSS Infrastructure Technology

SUNNYVALE, Calif., April 17, 2007 -- Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB) announced today it has supplied 31 Trimble NetR5™ GNSS reference stations and Trimble Zephyr Geodetic™ 2 antennas to Switzerlands Federal Office for Topography (swisstopo) to upgrade its nationwide positioning network with Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS) capabilities. The permanent geospatial infrastructure will support satellite signals from GPS and GLONASS, significantly optimizing real-time kinematic (RTK) positioning performance for surveying, engineering and Geographic Information System (GIS) professionals.

Known as AGNES (Automated GPS Network for Switzerland), the Swiss infrastructure enables swisstopo to provide the Swiss Positioning Service (swipos), which supplies RTK GPS and Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) corrections to users of the network. By implementing Trimble NetR5 GNSS reference stations, which support the modernized GPS L2C and L5 signals as well as GLONASS L1/L2 signals, the network will be upgraded and called AGNES II. In addition, the selection of the new Trimble Zephyr Geodetic 2 antennas provides AGNES II compatibility with future planned constellations and frequencies.

Originally built in 1999 with Trimble GPS receivers, the network covers the entire 41,000 square kilometers (25, 476 square miles) of Switzerland, which is known for its extreme topography ranging from mountains over 4,000 meters (13,123 feet) high to its lowest lake at 193 meters (633 feet). Users of AGNES II will be able to optimize positioning performance particularly in reception-critical areas, such as areas with interrupted reception and zones with extreme topographic features.

In addition, the use of Trimble RTKNet™ software provides AGNES II with Trimble VRS™ (Virtual Reference Station) functionality, which computes a virtual reference station for the user in the field, increasing system reliability and allowing significantly greater distances between reference stations. The VRS network will provide a highly reliable, cost-effective means for surveyors and other professionals to work faster and achieve more accurate GNSS results.

The AGNES II network is designed to cover the needs of swisstopo into the future and will enable accurate and reliable centimeter-level surveying measurements to be taken faster and more cost-effectively throughout Switzerland. AGNES II is expected to be fully operational by summer of 2007.

The nationwide Swiss VRS network follows more than 80 Trimble infrastructure installations networks throughout the world including: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of South Africa, Serbia, Singapore, Slovenia, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom and U.S. For a partial reference list of Trimble VRS installations visit: http://www.trimble.com/vrsinstallations.shtml.

About swisstopo

Established in 1893, Switzerland's Federal Office of Topography (swisstopo) is responsible for all geographical reference data and products. Swisstopo creates and maintains the geodetic, topographic and geological data for Switzerland including publishing the national map series at a variety of scales and keeping them current. Swisstopo's Federal Directorate of Cadastral Surveying division oversees the official cadastral survey, providing the measurement and mapping for the national land register. Swisstopo forms part of the armasuisse group within the Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS). For more information, visit: http://www.swisstopo.ch/en

About Trimble VRS Technology

Trimble VRS technology uses the RTK solutions from Trimble RTKNet software and provides high-accuracy, RTK GNSS positioning for wider areas. The VRS network is available at any time without the need for field base stations and provides common control anywhere in the network.

Because Trimble RTKNet software is able to process the entire network simultaneously, Trimble VRS networks offer greater quality control and higher data accuracy at longer distances. In the field, the farther users get from a reference station using conventional RTK, the more susceptible they become to reduced accuracy and performance due to systematic errors such as ionospheric and tropospheric effects. In a Trimble VRS network, RTKNet software provides a fully modeled solution that factor in potential systematic errors. Users connect into the system using a wireless connection; the software acknowledges the users field positions and allows them to operate as though there is a reference station—a virtual reference station—right next to their rover. As a result, the PPM error is eliminated or significantly reduced, allowing surveyors to achieve RTK precision over much greater distances with fewer reference stations. Users can also retrieve stored GNSS and modeled data from the control center via the Internet for post-processing.

About Trimble's Engineering and Construction Business

Trimble, a world leader in GPS, construction lasers, robotic total stations and machine control solutions, is creating a broad range of innovative solutions that change the way construction work is done. The Engineering and Construction business of Trimble is focusing on the development of technology and solutions in the core areas of surveying, construction and infrastructure. From concept to completion, Trimble's integrated systems streamline jobs and improve productivity.

About Trimble

Trimble applies technology to make field and mobile workers in businesses and government significantly more productive. Solutions are focused on applications requiring position or location—including surveying, construction, agriculture, fleet and asset management, public safety and mapping. In addition to utilizing positioning technologies, such as GPS, lasers and optics, Trimble solutions may include software content specific to the needs of the user. Wireless technologies are utilized to deliver the solution to the user and to ensure a tight coupling of the field and the back office. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., Trimble has a worldwide presence with more than 3,400 employees in over 18 countries.

For more information Trimbles Web site at www.trimble.com.

Certain statements made in this press release are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual events and results may differ materially from those described in this press release. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: the reception, cost-effectiveness and performance of the AGNES II network; the future compatibility of the network with changing technologies and ability of the network to meet the future needs of swisstopo and its professional end-users; the operational launch date of the network; and the impact of competing networks and technologies. More information about potential factors which could affect Trimbles business and financial results is set forth in reports filed with the SEC, including Trimble's quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and its annual report on Form 10-K. All forward looking statements are based on information available to Trimble as of the date hereof, and Trimble assumes no obligation to update such statements.

Investor Relations Contact: Willa McManmon of Trimble: 408-481-7838

Media Contact: LeaAnn McNabb of Trimble: 408-481-7808

Source: http://www.trimble.com/news/release.aspx?id=041707a

Chinese rocket puts up navigational spacecraft

China launched its second satellite in less than three days Friday when a Long March 3A rocket successfully delivered a navigation craft into orbit.

Liftoff of China's fifth navigation satellite was at 2011 GMT Friday (4:11 p.m. EDT) from the Xichang launch center in southwest China's Sichuan province, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The unannounced launch was in the early morning hours of Saturday, local time.

The three-stage Long March 3A rocket left its payload in an egg-shaped transfer orbit with an inclination of 55 degrees. The spacecraft will soon use its propulsion system to circularize the orbit at an altitude of about 13,000 miles.

Chinese media reports said the satellite is part of the nation's Compass space-based navigation system, which aims to provide precise location, velocity and timing information to users.

State media did not name the satellite launched Friday, but earlier members of the Compass constellation were called Beidou, which means Big Dipper when translated in English.

The system is similar to the U.S. Global Positioning System and other navigation satellite fleets in development by Russia and the European Union.

The Compass system will consist of five satellites orbiting in the geostationary belt some 22,000 miles above Earth, and 30 more craft circling the planet in a medium orbit, according to earlier Xinhua reports.

Previous Beidou satellites were placed in geostationary orbit, but Friday's launch delivered the first Compass satellite to medium Earth orbit.

More satellites will join the Compass fleet in the next few years, and officials expect the system will provide navigation data to China and neighboring countries by next year. Subsequent launches will then expand the system's coverage globally, Xinhua said.
Friday's launch was the third of the year for China. The newest Beidou satellite was put in space in February, and a marine surveying spacecraft was orbited Wednesday.


BY STEPHEN CLARK
SPACEFLIGHT NOW
Posted: April 14, 2007

China launches navigation satellite

BEIJING - A Chinese rocket placed a navigation satellite in orbit Saturday as part of an effort to build a global positioning system, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

The satellite was the fourth China has launched as part of its Compass navigation system, which will provide the country with navigation and positioning services beginning in 2008, Xinhua said.

A decade ago China grew worried about dependence on the U.S. satellite Global Positioning System network, the dominant positioning system, and began to develop alternatives. Besides the Compass system, China is investing in the European Union ‘s Galileo satellite navigation system and is talking about participating in Russia‘s GLONASS.

Source: Local News Watch

Navigation satellite wars

GPS is not the only global navigation satellite system out there, at least not for long. There are other nations trying to break their dependence from USA’s globally available free service - which can be shut down at will of U.S. military. Not to mention GPS (Navstar) is aging (even older than 1st generation iPods!!!) fast and it needs some serious upgrading.

European Union - Galileo

Initiated in 1999, Galileo is a joint effort of European countries. When first started, the U.S. opposed the plans stating that it would end their ability to control positioning satellites in military conflict scenarios. The pressure from the U.S. backfired and as a result the Galileo project was over-funded by European nations who decided it was crucial to be independent of U.S. controlled GPS.

The total cost of the system is expected to be around €3 billions. Galileo is funded by EU nations and China.

Primarily intended for civilians, Galileo will support different kinds of services: OS (open service) will broadcast in two bands (1164–1214 MHz and at 1563–1591 MHz) and when both are used you’ll be able to get <4 meter accuracy. CS (commercial service) will require a fee but if used with ground stations it will be able provide accuracy of less than 10 cm’s. It will use an extra band at 1260–1300 MHz in addition to the OS frequencies.

* Number of satellites: 30
* Completion Date: 2011
* Current Status: First satellite launched in December 2005 and first ‘Galileo’ signal received in January 2006.

China - Beidou

China’s Beidou was first planned to be used for military purposes but Chinese government has already announced it will be free for civilians as well. This would conflict with EU’s Galileo which plans to profit from selling of receivers and subscriptions to benefit from high accuracy signals.

* Completion Date: Coverage of China and neighbors by 2008 - global coverage in later years
* Number of satellites: 35
* Current Status: 4 satellites in orbit

Russia - Glonass

Russia’s Glonass has a long history which goes as far back as the peak of Cold War. The Glonass system has never been globally available since then, mostly due to instability in Soviet Union and current Russia. India, and possibly China, collaborate with Russia on Glonass. Since 1992 Russia has launched 44 satellites, some of which are no longer in service. Glonass’ civilian signal - which is only available half the time in Russia, and less globally - can provide <100 meters of accuracy. Military signals are better, providing accuracy of <15 meters. Russia has announced that it would make military grade signals available this year.

* Completion Date: 2011
* Number of satellites: 24
* Current Status: 16 in orbit, 5 of which is switched off. 12 more scheduled to be in orbit in the next two years

India - IRNSS

Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System, IRNSS, was recently approved with a budget just over $300 million. IRNSS is planned to provide only regional coverage provided by 7 satellites.

* Number of satellites: 7
* Completion Date: 2011
* Current Status: First satellite to be launched in 2008

USA - Navstar (GPS)

It is the only fully functional, globally available navigation satellite system so far. It is free for everybody on this planet. The first one of the satellites was launched in 1978 and the system has benn fully operational since 1995. However the satellites get old and need to be replaced and technological advancements require GPS to be upgraded.

The modernization has been approved since 2000 and is called GPS III. The new system will provide capabilities such as to shut off GPS service to a limited geographical location while providing GPS to US forces. The new GPS III satellites will still provide legacy capabilities while adding high-powered, anti-jam military-code signals.

These satellites will have about 500 times the transmitter power of the current system, multiplying its resistance to jamming. With a constellation of 30-32 satellites, GPS III will have second and third frequencies to contain civilian signal, L2 & L5, more robust signal transmissions, and provide real-time unaugmented 1 meter accuracy.

Completion Date: 2011
Number of satellites: 24+
Current Status: Fully functional, upgrade in process

Cource: Navigadget

GPS/GLONASS Interoperability and Compatibility Joint Statement

The meeting (December 14, 2006) was highly successful and resolved many questions regarding interoperability and compatibility between the GPS and GLONASS systems.

Download or view the document in PDF: http://www.glonass-ianc.rsa.ru/i/glonass/joint_statement_eng.pdf

Source: http://www.glonass-ianc.rsa.ru/pls/htmldb/f?p=202:1:17793156227589262252

TeKnol Ltd. --- innovative navigation, inertial reference and air data sensor integration technology firm

TeKnol Ltd. is an independent, privately held company headquartered in Moscow, Russia. It was founded in 2003 by a group of scientists, engineers and investors with the goal of commercializing analytic sensor fusion algorithms technology developed, tested and refined by key members of the group over several years.

By 2006 TeKnol became an innovative navigation, inertial reference and air data sensor integration technology firm, engaged in development, design, manufacturing, marketing, sales and support of ultra-compact low-cost inertial navigation systems (INS) integrated with Global Navigation Satellite System (GPS, GLONASS) for aviation, land and industrial applications.
We not only bring to the market our innovative end-user products, which enable real-time vehicle or person positioning, heading, attitude and acceleration determination, but offer customized INS and smart sensors solutions for third-party integration.

All our products are commercially available, maintenance free, industrially made with standard quality control and customer-friendly warranty policy. We provide our customers with long-term support.

Our "flagship" end-user product is PGC-A - Autonomous Portable Glass Cockpit System with perspective flight guidance, based on our Compact Integrated Navigation System (CINS), and proprietary "Pictorial Indication" software.

Other products include but are not limited to unmanned air vehicle (UAV) Flight Control System, flight data recorder, land-based navigation and motion sensing.


TeKnol website: http://www.teknol.ru/eng/

GPS Receivers For Pets

Russian science and research institute of space instrument-making is going to start developing GLONASS/GPS receivers for monitoring pets this year.

The devices, fastened on dogs' backs aren't in production yet, however, designers plan to start developing electronic shepherds as soon as this year. Western analogs cost over $600, thus Russian dog and cat owners would have to pay the equivalent in Russian rubles.

Scientists say that about 20 Russian companies produce terrestrial navigation devices for civil GLONASS/GPS users, thus creating stiff competition, especially in those units, designed only for one of mentioned navigation system.

Source: http://www.russia-ic.com/news/show/3766/

Russia Challenges the U.S. Monopoly on Satellite Navigation

MOSCOW, April 3 — The days of their cold war may have passed, but Russia and the United States are in the midst of another battle — this one a technological fight over the United States monopoly on satellite navigation.


A fabrication room at the Russian Institute of Radionavigation
and Time in St. Petersburg, a manufacturer of satellite navigation devices.

By the end of the year, the authorities here say, the Russian space agency plans to launch eight navigation satellites that would nearly complete the country’s own system, called Glonass, for Global Navigation Satellite System.

The system is expected to begin operating over Russian territory and parts of adjacent Europe and Asia, and then go global in 2009 to compete with the Global Positioning System of the United States.

Nor is Russia the only country trying to break the American monopoly on navigation technology. China has already sent up satellites to create its own system, called Baidu after the Chinese word for the Big Dipper. And the European Union has also begun developing a rival system, Galileo, although work has been halted because of doubts among the private contractors over its potential for profits. Russia’s system is furthest along, paid for with government oil revenue.

What is driving the technological battle is, in part, the potential for many more uses for satellite navigation than the one most people know it for — giving driving instructions to travelers. Businesses as disparate as agriculture and banking are integrating it into their operations. Satellite navigation may provide the platform for services like site-specific advertising, with directions that appear on cellphone screens when a user is walking, for example, near a Starbucks coffee shop or a McDonald’s restaurant.

Sales of G.P.S. devices are already booming. The global market for the devices hit $15 billion in 2006, according to the GPS Industry Council, a Washington trade group, and is expanding at a rate of 25 to 30 percent annually.

But what is also behind the battle for control of navigation technology is a fear that the United States could use its monopoly — the system was developed and is controlled by the military, after all — to switch off signals in a time of crisis.

“In a few years, business without a navigation signal will become inconceivable,” said Andrei G. Ionin, an aerospace analyst with the Center for the Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, which is linked to the Russian defense ministry. “Everything that moves will use a navigation signal — airplanes, trains, yachts, people, rockets, valuable animals and favorite pets.”


Devices like chips and receivers are made The Russian Institute
of Radionavigation and Time.

When that happens, countries that choose to rely only on G.P.S., he said, will be falling into “a geopolitical trap” of American dominance of an important Internet-age infrastructure. The United States could theoretically deny navigation signals to countries like Iran and North Korea, not just in time of war, but as a high-tech form of economic sanction that could disrupt power grids, banking systems and other industries, he said. The United States government’s stated policy is to provide uninterrupted signals globally.

G.P.S. devices, in fact, are at the center of the dispute over the Iranian seizure of 15 British sailors and marines. The British maintain that the devices on their boats showed they were in Iraqi waters; the Iranians have countered with map coordinates that it said showed they had been in Iranian waters.

Russia’s project, of course, carries wide implications for armies around the world by providing a navigation system not controlled by the Pentagon, complementing Moscow’s increasingly assertive foreign policy stance.

The United States formally opened G.P.S. to civilian users in 1993 by promising to provide it continually, at no cost, around the world.

The Russian system is also calculated to send ripples through the fast-expanding industry for consumer navigation devices by promising a slight technical advantage over G.P.S. alone, analysts and industry executives say. Devices receiving signals from both systems would presumably be more reliable.

President Vladimir V. Putin, who speaks often about Glonass and its possibilities, has prodded his scientists to make the product consumer friendly.

“The network must be impeccable, better than G.P.S., and cheaper if we want clients to choose Glonass,” Mr. Putin said last month at a Russian government meeting on the system, according to the Interfax news agency.

“You know how much I care about Glonass,” Mr. Putin told his ministers.

G.P.S. has its roots in the American military in the 1960s. In 1983, before the system was fully functional, President Ronald Reagan suggested making it available to civilian users around the world after a Korean Air flight strayed into Soviet airspace and was shot down.

G.P.S. got its first military test in the Persian Gulf war in 1991, and was seen as a big reason for the success of the precision bombing campaign, which helped spur its adoption in commercial applications in the 1990s.

The Russian system, like America’s G.P.S., has roots in the cold war technology to guide strategic bombers and missiles. It was briefly operational in the mid-1990s, but fell into disrepair. The Russian satellites send signals that are usable now but work only intermittently.

To operate globally, a system needs a minimum of 24 satellites, the number in the G.P.S. constellation, not counting spares in orbit.

A receiver must be in line of sight of no fewer than three satellites at any time to triangulate an accurate position. A fourth satellite is needed to calculate altitude. As other countries introduce competing systems, devices capable of receiving foreign signals along with G.P.S. will more often be in line of sight of three or more satellites.

Within the United States, Western Europe and Japan, ground-based transmissions hone the accuracy of signals to within a few feet of a location — better than what could be achieved with satellite signals alone. The Russian and eventual European or Chinese systems, therefore, would make receivers more reliable in preventing signal loss when there are obstructions, like steep canyons, tall buildings or even trees.

Still, a Glonass-capable G.P.S. receiver in the United States, Western Europe or Japan would not be more accurate than a G.P.S. system alone, because of the ground-based correction signals. In other parts of the world, a Glonass-capable G.P.S. receiver would be more reliable and slightly more accurate.

American manufacturers that are dominant in the industry could be confronted with pressure to offer these advantages to customers by making devices compatible with the Russian system, inevitably undermining the American monopoly on navigation signals used in commerce.

In this sense, the Russians are setting off the first salvo in a battle for an infrastructure in the skies. Russia sees a great deal at stake in influencing the standards that will be used in civilian consumer devices.

The market for satellite navigators is growing rapidly. Garmin, the largest American manufacturer, more than doubled sales of automobile navigators in 2006, for example, and in February it showed a Super Bowl ad that was seen as a coming of age for G.P.S. navigators as a mass market product.

Jeremy D. Ludwig was one consumer who said he would be willing to pay a slight premium for a device equipped with a chip capable of processing Russian navigation signals.

He recounted a recent trip on Interstate 25 in Colorado, when, he said, he was dismayed to discover the G.P.S. device on his BlackBerry had inexplicably lost its signal, just as he was trying to decide which exit to take into Denver.

“If you don’t know which exit to take, you’re already lost,” Mr. Ludwig, an art student, said in a recent telephone interview from Colorado Springs.

That kind of attitude is what Russia is banking on even as it also takes a stab at making consumer receivers — so far without much success. But the Russian goal of diversifying navigation signals used in commerce will be achieved, Mr. Ionin said, even if foreign manufacturers simply adopt the Russian standard, and even if Russia’s own attempt to make consumer devices fails.

To encourage wide acceptance, Mr. Putin has been pitching the system during foreign visits, asking for collaboration and financial support.

Now, only makers of high-end surveying and professional navigation receivers have adopted dual-system capability.

Topcon Positioning Systems of Livermore, Calif., for example, offers a Glonass and G.P.S. receiver for surveyors and heavy-equipment operators. Javad Navigation Systems is built around making dual-system receivers, with offices in San Jose and Moscow.

Javad Ashjaee, the president of Javad, said in an interview that wide adoption was inevitable because more satellites provided an inherently better service. “If you have G.P.S., you have 90 percent of what you need,” he said. Russia’s system will succeed, he said, “for that extra 10 percent.”

Adding Glonass to low-end consumer devices would require a new chip, with associated design costs, but probably not much in the way of additional manufacturing expenses, he said.

Already this year, in a sign of growing acceptance of Glonass, another high-end manufacturer, Trimble, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., introduced a Russian-compatible device for agricultural navigators, used for applying pesticides, for example.

Whether consumer goods manufacturers will follow is an open question, John R. Bucher, a wireless equipment analyst at BMO Capital Markets, said in a telephone interview.

Garmin, which has more than 50 percent of the American market, has not yet taken a position on Glonass. “We are waiting,” Jessica Myers, a spokeswoman for Garmin, said in a telephone interview.

For most consumers, she said, devices are reliable enough already. Growth in the industry is driven instead by better digital mapping and software, making what already exists more useful. Garmin’s latest car navigator, for example, alerts drivers to traffic jams on the road ahead and the price of gas at nearby stations.

At home at least, the Kremlin is guaranteeing a market by requiring ships, airplanes and trucks carrying hazardous materials to operate with Glonass receivers, while providing grants to half a dozen Russian manufacturers of navigators.

Technically precise they may be, but even by Russian standards, some of the Russian-made products coming to market now are noticeably lacking in convenience features.

At the Russian Institute of Radionavigation and Time in St. Petersburg, for example, scientists have developed the M-103 dual system receiver. The precision device theoretically operates more reliably than a G.P.S. unit under tough conditions, like the urban canyons of Manhattan.

With its boxy appearance, the M-103 resembles a Korean War-era military walkie-talkie. It weighs about one pound and sells for $1,000, display screen not included. To operate, a user must unfurl a cable linking the set to an external antenna mounted on a spiked stick, intended to be jabbed into a field.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t developed a hand-held version yet,” said Vadim S. Zholnerov, a deputy director of the institute.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/04/business/worldbusiness/04gps.html?ref=worldbusiness

GLONASS-devising Russian institute marks its 50th jubilee

ST PETERSBURG, April 3 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian Institute of Radionavigation and Time marks its 50th jubilee on Tuesday. It was the Institute's scientists that devised the professional satellite-aided navigation equipment GLONASS that has been adapted to its foreign analogues, GPS/GALILEO.

A scientific conference and a ceremonial session of the Learned Council will be held at the Institute on the occasion of the jubilee.

A production line with a capacity of 10,000 instrumentation packages a year has been brought into being on the basis of the Institute, which is the Rosprom (Federal Industrial Agency) leading research center in the field of radionavigation, systems of precision time and synchronisation, an official in the jubilee events organizing committee has told Itar-Tass.

The committee official specified that a collective of scientists and specialists currently engage in "creating a single time coordinate and navigation support system".

Researchers at the Institute have also worked out more than 40 types of onboard synchronizing devices, atomic standards of frequency, and measuring instrumentation for space systems under national programmes for the development of space-based means for the observation of the Earth in the interests of defence and the national economy.

Source: http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=11396883&PageNum=0

Trimble Introduces New AgGPS 442 GNSS Receiver With GLONASS and GPS L2C Satellite Signal Capabilities for Agriculture Applications

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Feb. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) introduced today a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver for agricultural users -- the AgGPS(R) 442 GNSS receiver. The new receiver can track GLONASS and next-generation Global Positioning System (GPS) L2C satellite signals. With more satellite signals to access, the AgGPS 442 GNSS receiver improves the farmer's ability to work in tough GPS environments with faster initialization times, and provides for increased productivity and reduced downtime in the field.


The AgGPS® 332 Ultimate Choice receiver
AgGPS 442 GNSS Image not found o the web

The AgGPS 442 GNSS receiver will be showcased at the World Ag Exposition in Tulare, California.

The new GLONASS and GPS L2C processing capability from Trimble improves signal availability for high accuracy real-time kinematic (RTK) agricultural applications that rely heavily on "Z," or vertical axis satellite positioning data. It also aids RTK applications in difficult satellite scenarios such as geographic areas with limited periods of GPS signal availability. Agricultural applications that can benefit from the combined satellite signal capability include land leveling, automated guidance, and data collection for topographic mapping.

"Trimble is committed to the development of easy-to-use positioning solutions for agriculture applications," said Erik Arvesen, general manager of Trimble's Agriculture Division, "The new receiver further simplifies positioning by taking advantage of the GLONASS and next-generation GPS L2C signals to provide more reliable and robust positioning in a broad range of environments."

The Trimble AgGPS 442 is an integrated GNSS receiver and radio that support GLONASS, GPS L1/L2, RTK GPS and next-generation GPS L2C signals. The new receiver simply connects to the Trimble AgGPS Zephyr(TM) II antenna mounted on the roof of the agricultural vehicle or implement to provide position data to: the AgGPS FieldManager(TM) Display for topographic mapping, the AgGPS FieldLevel System and AgGPS 170 Field Computer for land leveling, and the AgGPS Autopilot(TM) System for automated guidance.

The AgGPS 442 GNSS receiver is available now from Trimble resellers. For more information, including the location of your nearest Trimble reseller, call 1-800-865-7438 or visit www.trimble.com .

About GNSS, GLONASS and GPS L2C

GNSS refers collectively to the worldwide positioning, navigation, and timing determination capabilities available from one or more satellite constellations. These constellations include but are not limited to the U.S. NAVSTAR GPS, Russian Federation's GLONASS, European Union's Galileo and complementary regional augmentation systems such as the U.S. WAAS and European EGNOS.

GLONASS is a satellite navigation system under modernization by Russia that provides free positioning; generally between one and four GLONASS satellites are in view in addition to GPS satellites. GPS refers to the U.S. NAVSTAR GPS. In late 2006, the U.S. added the second in a series of next-generation GPS satellites to the NAVSTAR constellation. These new satellites include an additional modernized civilian GPS signal, L2C, for more robust signal tracking. GNSS is an acronym used to designate receivers that support signals from multiple sources such as GPS, GLONASS, GPS Modernization (L2C) and RTK.

About Trimble

Trimble applies technology to make field and mobile workers in businesses and government significantly more productive. Solutions are focused on applications requiring position or location-including surveying, construction, agriculture, fleet and asset management, public safety and mapping. In addition to utilizing positioning technologies, such as GPS, lasers and optics, Trimble solutions may include software content specific to the needs of the user. Wireless technologies are utilized to deliver the solution to the user and to ensure a tight coupling of the field and the back office. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., Trimble has a worldwide presence with more than 2,800 employees in over 18 countries.

For more information, visit: www.trimble.com .

Source: http://www.trimble.com/news/release.aspx?id=021207a

Sitronics Will Partner with Chinese to Navigate by Satellite

The Russian IT company Sitronics has signed an agreement with the Chinese ZTE on the establishment of a joint enterprise to produce navigational equipment using the Russian GLONASS satellite system. Analysts say that the market for navigational services is growing leaps and bounds in Russia. Turnover on that market amounted to $50 million last year, a full six time greater than the previous year. The same analysts warn, however, that the new company will need major state orders to turn a profit.


Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev visits Sitronics company office.

The agreement between the Chinese and AFL Sistema's IT division was timed to the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao. The agreement envisages the establishment of a research center for the development of household appliance in Zelenograd. The appliances developed will be manufactured in China. There is a separate point in the agreement on the establishment of a joint enterprise to produce GLONASS navigation equipment. Neither the timeline nor the budget for the projects has been made public.

ZTE is one of the world's largest manufacturers of telecommunication s equipment. The Chinese government owns 51.8 percent of the stock in ZTE, and another 37.7 percent of it trades on the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges. The company's proceeds for the first nine months of 2006 were $2.013 billion. The company's capitalization as of March 25, 2007, was $4.643 billion.

The Russian GLONASS (Global Navigational Satellite System) is the only competitor to the American GPS (Global Position) system in the world today. The Russia system is supposed to come online at the end of this year, after the launch of the 18th GLONASS-M satellite. Then the owners of a GLONASS navigational systems will be able to determine their positions within Russia to an accuracy of 10-15 km. The system will be available worldwide by the end of 2009, when 24 satellites will have been launched.

Analysts expect the Russian government alone to buy 700,000 GLONASS navigators.

Source: www.kommersant.com

Russia’s GLONASS and Europe’s Galileo to unite against USA’s GPS

Russian global positioning system GLONASS, the world’s only functioning competitor of the US GPS, and the European system Galileo will be supplementary to each other, according to the head of the Russian Space Agency Anatoly Perminov. “We should create these systems in a way to make GLONASS and Galileo efficient and compatible”, Perminov said after the meeting with the head of the European Space Agency J.J. Dordenom and the head of the General Directorate on Business and Industry of the European Commission H. Surek.


GLONASS and Galileo vs. GPS (dutchspace.nl)

Perminov informed that the talks resulted in the agreement according to which "the work of the systems GLONASS and Galielo will be possible on the same consumers’ equipment". Within the frameworks of the agreement specific works on technical compatibility of both systems are already planned. Cooperation in satellite navigation is one of the seven directions of the cooperation between Russian and European Space Agencies.

In spite of the fact the full-fledged Russian system consisting of 24 satellites will start working globally in 2009 and the Europeans “are just in the beginning” the agreement is politically and economically advantageous for Russians. First of all it brings Russia closer to the huge and rich European market, as well as to the consumers in the regions which are oriented towards European hardware. Secondly, civil use of the navigation system is considered a bottle neck for the Russian project, therefore joining the efforts with the Europe, where satellite navigation is already widely spread, is a tangible moral support. The last but not least is that Russian and European systems together will be a far more competitive alternative to the American GPS than each system alone.

Yuri Seleznyov
Pravda.ru

GPS + Glonass Technolgy

Animated movie about how GPS + Glonass Technolgy works. Basic overview for how GPS technology is utilized in the field

India joins Russian GPS system

NEW DELHI: India's quest for a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system has ended. It will access the Russian Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), ending speculation that India was considering being a part of the network, formerly a military system, now open to civilian use.

India's search for a GPS system had seen it engage in negotiations with the European project Galileo, but the deal had run into security concerns. Indian negotiators were not satisfied that the information accessible on the proposed system was adequately firewalled against individuals and possible military users. China is also part of Galileo.

Recent discussions with Russia had seen reports last week that India could be part of GLONASS. A decision has now been taken and India will be able to access the constellation of active satellites which transmit coded signals in two frequency bands.

These can be used to identify position and velocity in real time based on ranging arrangements. Access to the GPS-type system has important advantages in managing traffic, roadways and ports. It is also an important tool for police and security agencies to track stolen vehicles or those being driven by criminals. It has implications for national disaster warning and will be useful in commercial transactions dealing with sale and exchange of geographical and economic data.

Individual users can find it beneficial for navigation, from hand-held devices taken on treks to systems in cars and trucks. It is used in geo-physical studies, entering data into a geographic information system and wildlife management. In military terms, it enhances accuracy of weapons and so reduces the "fog of war".

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_joins_Russian_GPS_system/articleshow/1502481.cms

GLONASS to Top U.S.'s GPS, Putin Says

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that GLONASS, his country's satellite positioning system that is still being deployed, would be better that the GPS system currently in service and operated by the United States.

The semi-official news service Itar-Tass quoted Mr. Putin as saying, “In order users chose GLONASS, the system should operate flawlessly, better than GPS (the global positioning system). Cheaper and with a better quality.” Mr. Putin reportedly made the statement at a meeting of government officials yesterday.

The news service said that the president closely follows progress of the satellite system. Mr. Putin went on to offer a none too subtle hint that he expects all sectors of the Russian economy to embrace GLONASS, saying “We have the right to count on known, healthy economic patriotism of our users, first of all of the state, but I proceed from the assumption that we shall work on market terms in this sector of the economy, and users will be able to chose a quality service.”

The first GLONASS satellite was launched in October of 1982. However, the project stagnated with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The program appears to have been re-energized by the recent attention given to it by the Russian President. Three GLONASS satellites were launched in December of last year. Plans are for the the navigation system to be ready for Russian use by the end of this year with a total of 18 satellites in orbit. Continuous global operations require a minimum of 24 satellites, which is planned by late 2009.

Source: http://geocarta.blogspot.com/2007/03/glonass-to-top-uss-gps-putin-says.html

Russians to launch GLONASS in 2007

GLONASS, the acronym for Global Navigation Satellite System, was developed during Soviet times as a response to the U.S. Global Positioning System, or GPS. The system originally had 24 satellites, but their number dwindled after the 1991 Soviet collapse.


Topcon company already uses GLONASS

Thanks to Russia's booming oil revenues, the government has earmarked funds to revive the system to its full strength and offer it to global consumers. Officials said that at least 18 satellites were necessary to provide navigation services over the entire Russian territory, and promised to make it fully operational later this year.

"I hope that our navigation system will start working in 2007," Putin was quoted as saying.

Russian officials said that the system would be available worldwide by the end of 2009, for which it would need to have 24 satellites.

There are 19 GLONASS satellites currently in orbit, but only eight are in working condition, according to a statement posted on the Mission Control's site. Another three satellites launched in December are about to enter service, it said. Russia plans to launch another six GLONASS satellites later this year.

Sergei Ivanov, the first deputy prime minister overseeing high-tech and military industries, said China had voiced interest in joint production of GLONASS positioning devices. He added that some nations, including several unnamed Persian Gulf states, had already voiced interest in using the Russian system.

According to RIA-Novosti, 9.88 billion rubles (US$379.7 million; €284.38 million) has been allocated for GLONASS from the federal budget in 2007, more than double the amount for 2006.

News source: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/03/29/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-Space.php

Image source: http://www.topcon.com.au/gps/GPSGLONASS.htm