Geely Launches Nine Navigation Satellites
240-satellite constellation planned
A Long March 2C launched nine Geespace satellites into low Earth orbit that will support navigation and autonomous driving for automaker Geely. The satellites, part of a future 240-satellite Geely Future Mobility Constellation, will provide centimeter-accurate precise positioning and connectivity support for the automaker, the company said.
Geely is trying to mirror another auto company, Tesla [TSLA.O], in its efforts to launch satellites and provide services. However, Geely has a long way to go as Tesla, through its SpaceX entity, has more than 2,000 satellites in orbit for its Starlink network.
Geely says the first phase of 72 satellites, each with a five-year life, are planned to be sent into orbit, and operational, by 2025. The second phase will have an additional 168 satellites.
The company said that Geespace’s terrestrial base station in Korla, China, has reported that they have connected the first nine GeeSAT-1 satellites—and say they are functioning correctly. This continued functionality will allow to become one of the first providers of combined commercial Precise Point Positioning and Real-Time Kinematic services (PPP-RTK).
Geespace, a subsidiary of Geely, operates and manages its satellite constellation through a network of ground stations in Qingdao, Taizhou, Korla, Chengdu, and Harbin. The company said initial service coverage will be provided to the Chinese market and the Asia-Pacific region—with plans for expanding global coverage after 2026.
Apple Maps Announces New Maps Features
At Apple’s [AAPL] Worldwide Developers Conference this week, where the company announced its iOS 16 mobile operating system, several new features were added to its Maps app, including multistep routing and transit information functions.
The multistep routing options allows users to plan as many as 15 stops in advance of travel. In addition, the app allows users to plan routes on a Mac and then send to a phone.
Other new features include allowing riders to see how much a journey will cost and asking Siri to add additional stops along a route.
The company also announced that it is introducing its upgraded map to such countries as France, Switzerland, New Zealand, Belgium, Israel, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia and the Netherlands. The map is currently available in Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom.
Apple also said that a 3D city feature map will soon be available in Miami, Chicago and Sydney, among six selected cities.
EIB Grants Kontakt.io 12 Million Euros in Funding
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a 12 million euro agreement with indoor spatial intelligence company Kontakt Micro-Location, also known as Kontakt.io, to support the company’s expansion into healthcare, workspace and other smart building markets.
As part of the funding, Kontakt.io will focus on AI research activities at its Krakow, Poland, research and development facility. In 2021, EIB funded more than 6.5 billion euros for projects in Poland.
EIB, which is owned by the EU’s member states, has been making investments in such smaller tech companies as Kontakt.io. Overall, the bank finances projects in four areas: infrastructure, innovation, climate and environment, and small and medium-sized companies (SMEs).
Kontakt.io uses Bluetooth Low Energy beacons and tags for smart buildings, healthcare and corporate real estate markets. The company said its devices cover more than one billion square feet, with 3 million IoT devices fielded.
Contact: Aneta Ciurkot, Kontakt.io, aneta@kontakt.io.
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☹ TomTom To Cut 51 Jobs in Ghent, Belgium. “TomTom has a significant operation in Ghent, Belgium. The intention to cut 51 out of 260 jobs in Ghent was announced at a special works council meeting, says Els De Coster, secretary of the trade union ACLVB.”
👌 AT&T, Verizon and T-mobile Will Start Providing Z-axis Data for 911 Calls. “A set of commitments between US wireless carriers and the FCC established a 7-day deadline for AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile to start delivering vertical location data for 911 calls nationwide.”
😧 All Eyes on the FCC as Deadline for 911 Overhaul Approaches. “By enforcing its z-axis requirements and moving toward nationwide deployment, the FCC can fundamentally transform national emergency response.”
🛰 Xona To Test GPS-alternative Demo Satellite With Customer. “Canadian GPS equipment and solutions provider NovAtel, which said May 31 it has signed up to be an early adopter of Xona’s proposed network of around 300 cubesats, plans to use the in-orbit test bed to configure its technology.”
👏 NIST Prize Challenge Seeks Innovative Incident Command Dashboards for Public Safety. “NIST is launching a new prize competition to advance incident command dashboard technologies that would allow for real-time tracking of assets, personnel and objects of interest during emergency scenarios. Up to $1 million will be awarded in prizes throughout four stages of the challenge.”
😮 Google Slated to Axe Location-based Reminders From Assistant. “For those who don’t know or remember, you were able to create reminders to yourself according to a location. As an example, you could set a reminder to buy a gallon of milk at the supermarket, and if Google Assistant on your phone detects you driving past one, it’ll let you know.”
🙁 Tim Hortons App Tracked People Illegally, Canada Watchdogs Say. “App data showed where users lived, where they worked.”
🚀 NASA Moon Mission Set to Break Record in Navigation Signal Test. “NASA’s Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment payload will test a powerful new lunar navigation capability using Earth’s GNSS signals at the Moon for the first time.”
🥇 New Sigfox Parent Claims Milestone. “Unabiz, the new parent of Sigfox, has said Heliot Europe, has switched on the millionth Sigfox-based IoT device in Alps Alpine’s line of Lykaner-branded asset trackers.”
😐 Self-driving Car Companies' First Step To Making Money Isn't Robotaxis. “Investment analysts from Goldman Sachs and Nomura point to opportunities in auto software itself, from in-car entertainment to self-driving systems.”
👍 EIB signs agreement with Kontakt.io. The European Investment Bank (EIB) signed an agreement with Kontakt Micro-Location an indoor spatial intelligence company developing digital building services.
🚗 Google Maps and Waze: Three Features Both Need Right Now. Truck navigation, speed bump warnings and EV routes…
🚘 Intelematics Partners With Aeris. “To bring the Aeris Mobility Suite (AMS) connected vehicle platform to local vehicle manufacturers and distributors in Australia and New Zealand.”
✔ MiX Telematics [MIXT] Declares 5-cent Quarterly Dividend.
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Astrocast Acquires Asset Tracking Company Hiber
Astrocast last week signed an agreement to acquire Hiber, a Netherlands-based, IoT-as-a-Service provider. Astrocast has agreed to acquire all of Hiber’s shares in exchange for new company shares, representing 16.5 percent of share capital. Hiber’s shareholders also agreed to invest 10.45 million euros in the Astrocast public offering, the company said.
Hiber provides asset monitoring and tracking solutions to industrial customers. Astrocast said the deal expands its distribution strategy, as well as adds coverage of the Americas region, by establishing a direct-to-end user sales channel.
Contact: Astrocast, www.astrocast.com.
HERE Technologies Provides Safety Features for Motorcycle Maker
HERE Technologies has announced that it is providing motorcycle maker Aeonmotor's CROXERA M Smart Rearview Mirror with safety features. In addition, the company is providing turn-by-turn route guidance to the CROXERA smart dashboard and companion app.
HERE has joined Aeonmotor’s CROXERA Safety Internet-of-Vehicle Alliance, which includes such industry players as AU Optronics, Micro-Star International, Microsoft and Sanyang Motor.
Contact: Camy Cheng, HERE Technologies, 65 9088 4127, Camy.cheng@here.com.
Keysight Collaborates With DEKRA to Meet EU Regs
Keysight Technologies [KEYS] has collaborated with DEKRA to ensure that chipset and device vendors can validate European E112 caller location. The companies will leverage LBS and GNSS technologies to verify E112 regulatory test cases used to validate mobile phones sold into the European market, the company said. A European Union regulation, which went into effect March 17, mandates that all new mobile phones sold in the EU need to support GNSS technology based on the Galileo constellation, advanced mobile location (AML) protocol and Wi-Fi communications technology.
Contact: Geri Lynne LaCombe, Keysight, (303) 662-4748, geri_lacombe@keysight.com, www.keysight.com.
U-blox Releases Platform To Test and Validate Iot Solutions
Thalwil, Switzerland-based u-blox [UBXN] has announced the u-blox XPLR-IOT-1 IoT explorer kit to test, evaluate and validate IoT applications. The kit integrates u-blox technologies and services into a prototyping platform.
The company says that an increasing number of IoT devices, which require satellite-based positioning, Bluetooth low energy, Wi-Fi, and cellular connectivity, are making it important to prototype and validate ideas before production. The board integrates a MAX-M10S positioning module that concurrently tracks four GNSS constellations.
Contact: Natacha Seitz, u-blox, 41 76 436 0788, natacha.seitz@u-blox.com, www.u‑blox.com.
Hexagon Division Announces Autonomy & Positioning Reality Summit
Hexagon’s Autonomy & Positioning division said its Autonomy & Positioning Reality Summit, as part of HxGN LIVE Global, has earned IEEE accreditation for attendees. HxGN LIVE Global will be June 20-23 in Las Vegas. Summit attendees will be able to claim up to 10 PDH or 1 CEU to put towards their IEEE certificates.
Keynotes speeches will come from Robert Thirsk, engineer and astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency; Michael Ritter, president of Hexagon’s Autonomy & Positioning division; Venkat Krovi, Clemson University; Todd Walter, Stanford University; and Omar Ahmad, University of Iowa.
Contact: Jessica Fielding, Hexagon, (403) 919-3388, Jessica.fielding@hexagon.com, www.hexagon.com.
Parkopedia Launches Amazon Alexa Default Parking Skill
Parkopedia has launched Amazon Alexa Skill for voice-enabled parking assistance. Parkopedia’s Alexa Skill enables drivers to find, reserve and pay for a parking spot, either from home with Alexa-enabled smart home devices, on-the-go with ‘Echo Buds’ or the Alexa mobile app, or in the vehicle, using integrated Alexa or supported auto accessories, the company said.
Contact: Adam Calland, Parkopedia, 44(0)7838219129, adam.calland@parkopedia.com, business.parkopedia.com.
Comtech Grabs Saudi Arabia Location Contract
Comtech Telecommunications Corp. [CMTL] said Trusted Location group was awarded a contract “with a tier one operator” in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) to support their 5G standalone network. The project, of which financial details were not disclosed, is the second 5G project for Trusted Location in the KSA, the company said. The mobile network operator will expand its current location technology platform for emergency response, safety, security, and value-added services, the company said.
Contact: Robert Samuels, Comtech, (631) 962-7102, robert.samuels@comtech.com, www.comtechlocation.com.
Septentrio Launches OSNMA Authentication
Septentrio has launched OSNMA (Open Service Navigation Message Authentication) on its PolaRx5 reference receiver series. OSNMA offers end-to-end authentication on Galileo’s civilian signals, protecting receivers from GNSS spoofing attacks, the company said.
OSNMA authentication mechanism is available on the mosaic GNSS module family and on Septentrio’s latest OEM boards, the company said. The company is displaying PolaRx5 receivers with OSNMA technology at the ION JNC conference this week.
Contact: Septentrio, www.septentrio.com.
BAE Systems Expands Capabilities of DIGAR
BAE Systems [BA.L] expanded the capabilities of its Digital GPS Anti-Jam Receiver (DIGAR) by enabling beamforming with Trimble [TRMB] receivers in addition to its own receivers, the company said. DIGAR's beamforming capabilities increase the level of GPS jamming protection for aircraft, the company said.
BAE Systems developed software to ensure the compatibility of its antenna electronics with industry-standard Embedded GPS Inertial Navigation System (EGI) technology. The company says DIGAR provides the only antenna electronics on the market to beamform with both BAE Systems receivers and Trimble GPS receivers embedded in aircraft EGIs
Contact: BAE Systems, www.baesystems.com/en/product/gps-products.
Companies Launch IoT-based Tracking Eval Kit
Actility, Abeeway and Favendo have announced a joint IoT-based tracking evaluation kit. The kit offers a location solution that provides indoor and outdoor tracking for individuals and assets in various industries. Some applications include for open pit mines, theft prevention, underground mining, employee safety tracking and warehouse logistics.
The solution combines LoRaWAN and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technologies. The kit is available now for purchase at Actility's ThingPark Market. Favendo, a provider of real-time location services and partner of RTLS provider Quuppa, offers mobile tracking and navigation solutions for cruise ships, airports, sports stadiums and factories. Abeeway offers low-power fused geolocation and IoT tracking solutions. The system is suitable for open pit mines, theft prevention, underground mining, employee safety tracking and warehouse logistics.
Contact: Actility, https://www.actility.com/contact.
InfiniDome and C-Astral Display UAVs With GPS Resiliency
InfiniDome and C-Astral will be displaying their technologies at the Eurosatory conference next week in Paris. C-Astral integrates InfiniDome’s GPSdome into their SQA eVTOL to protect it from jamming attacks and provide resiliency in GPS-challenged environments, the company said. GPSdome is a retrofit device compatible with any GNSS-based system—and tailored for class 1-3 drones, the company said.
Contact: Noa Zilkha, infiniDome, noa@infinidome.com, www.infinidome.com.
ADVA Offers GBaaS To Service Operators
ADVA [ADV] has announced that its service operators can now offer the company’s GPS/GNSS-backup-as-a-service (GBaaS). The service enables end users to address new guidelines and standards for redundant PNT architectures and leverages ADVA’s aPNT+ technology. ADVA’s GBaaS solution includes its Syncjack technology to provide synchronization performance monitoring and analytics
Contact: Gareth Spence, ADVA, 44 1904 699 358,public-relations@adva.com, www.adva.com.
ZeroKey Launches RTLS for Industrial Applications
ZeroKey has launched its Quantum RTLS, a large-scale 3D real-time location system (RTLS). The technology allows operational visibility of manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, and human-centric workflows, the company said.
Quantum RTLS provides digitization of location of assets for closed-loop control of highly dynamic workflows, real-time monitoring of human-centric processes, process analytics, and high-fidelity digital twinning, the company said. Features include real-time 3D tracking, millimeter-level accuracy, and wide-area multi-floor/multi-room/multi-building scalability.
Contact: Hailey Monar, ZeroKey, hmonar@zerokey.com, www.zerokey.com.
Moeco Rolls Out Container Monitoring Solution
Moeco has launched a smart container monitoring solution for logistics companies to improve the location and condition of containers. The tracking solution works with Moeco Act Trackers, which use 4G and 5G cellular networks, to provide real-time access to geolocation, temperature, humidity, light, and shock data for pallets and packages.
Contact: Moeco, moeco.io.
People
Comtech Telecommunications Corp. [CMTL] has named Jon Opalski as new divisional COO. The company also created a new GM of Digital Products position headed by Bob Pescatore. Opalski joins Comtech from Benchmark Electronics. Pescatore joins Comtech from Cubic Corp.
R. Wayne Johnson has been named Director of Partnerships, Solera Fleet Solutions, at Solera Inc.
Jobs
Director Business Development, Telco and Carrier Partnerships. NextNav.
Sr. Director/GM Business Development - International. NextNav.
Senior Technical Program Manager. NextNav.
Assistant General Counsel. NextNav.
