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Facebook has open-sourced the design of its time card, which features the ultra-precise u‑blox ZED-F9T timing module, providing easy access to nanosecond-level timing

Facebook has chosen the u‑blox ZED-F9T GNSS receiver module for timekeeping, according to u-blox. By improving the synchronization of networked computers, Facebook’s time card can significantly speed up the performance of its data centers and distributed databases.

By open-sourcing their designs, Facebook has bolstered the adoption of highly accurate timing solutions based on u‑blox technology. These solutions can be adopted by other industries requiring nanosecond-level timing, such as 5G cellular networks or smart power grids.

Facebook set out to create a precise timing solution that reduces the computational overhead required when synchronizing the timing between different computers in a network, u-blox said. The social media company used a u‑blox ZED-F9T multi-band GNSS receiver to sync up its solution with the highly accurate GNSS atomic clocks. To bridge possible gaps in GNSS coverage and keep clock drift to a minimum, the time card contains a backup timing source: a miniaturized atomic clock continuously synchronized with GNSS time.

To maximize the impact of the solution, Facebook decided to open-source the design of its time card, which fits onto a PCIe form factor. Anyone with experience working with microelectronics can turn any PC built on an x86 architecture and featuring a network interface controller into a nanosecond-level-accurate timing and synchronization solution, u-blox said.

Easy access to nanosecond-level timing accuracy — based on the u‑blox RCB-F9T timing board, which hosts the u‑blox ZED-F9T GNSS receiver — opens new avenues in industry segments that rely on highly synchronized signals, such as 5G network base stations that require tighter synchronization than those of previous generations, u-blox said.

As power-distribution networks become more complex to accommodate a growing share of decentralized renewable energy, they are becoming more reliant on reliable and accurate timing solutions. Data centers and computer networks will be able to modernize infrastructure management to speed up performance and reduce latencies.

Facebook has shared the GitHub repository including the specs, the schematics, the mechanics, the bill of material, and the source code in partnership with the Open Compute Project (OCP) under the Time Appliance Project (TAP).

Swift Navigation‘s precise positioning platform has been named a 2021 PACEpilot Innovation to Watch by Automotive News.

The Automotive News PACEpilot award recognizes post-pilot, pre-commercial innovations in the automotive and future mobility space. These represent product, software/IT system or process and idea incubators that have the potential to revolutionize an automaker’s business.

This was the second year Automotive News recognized PACEpilot honorees and the first time the publication named Innovations to Watch. Swift’s precise positioning platform was selected as one of 10 winners from a group of 23 finalists from 20 companies.

Swift’s precise positioning solution consists of the receiver-agnostic Starling positioning engine and cloud-based corrections from Skylark precise positioning service. The system was designed for autonomy and built to scale for automotive, to change how automakers and OEMs navigate by reducing costs, improving product flexibility, improving safety and delivering high-fidelity, lane-level absolute positioning.

Swift’s technology has been developed into a precise positioning platform that can improve vehicle GNSS-based positioning from an average of 3 meters of accuracy to better than 4 centimeters. Swift’s solution is a software-only implementation with minimal impact to hardware on the vehicle. The accuracy can be guaranteed down to less than one failure per 1,142 years of driving, making it a highly reliable ADAS and automated driving sensor.

“The team at Swift is honored to receive this recognition from Automotive News,” said Joel Gibson, executive vice president of Automotive at Swift Navigation. “Swift is bringing its ground-breaking, high-accuracy localization to the automotive space and we appreciate that those in the industry are taking notice.”

Calls for stronger national resilience against GNSS vulnerabilities and cyber threats to PNT services

ADVA has responded to calls from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to protect critical infrastructure from the growing danger of GNSS vulnerabilities and cyber threats to positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services with the launch of its aPNT+ platform.

The scalable aPNT+ platform meets all the latest guidelines for resilient PNT, the company said. It provides end-to-end control and timing network visibility for robust protection against the catastrophic risks that PNT disruption poses to national security and essential assets such as power grids.

“Cyber threats are at an all-time high. At the same time, the infrastructure that our economies and lives depend on has never been more reliant on weak and highly vulnerable satellite signals. That’s why the U.S .DHS and NIST are driving for PNT services to be more resilient and for network operators to implement strategies to counteract the vulnerabilities of GPS and other GNSS systems, including in-network PTP timing feeds. Our trusted aPNT+ platform is the definitive response.

Governments worldwide have issued guidelines to protect businesses and society from disruption to PNT services, including US Executive Order 13905, which was followed by the DHS Resilient PNT Conformance Framework and NIST Cybersecurity Framework for PNT Profile. The government guidelines urge operators to swiftly implement technologies and measures to safeguard vital infrastructure.

Based on these guidelines, ADVA integrated an intelligent and scalable aPNT platform into its product portfolio. Even without GPS or GNSS timing, the solution provides an intelligent, end-to-end self-recovery system designed around a three-fold framework. Integrating sophisticated multi-layer detection, multi-source backup and multi-level fault-tolerant mitigation, it delivers high levels of resilience, robustness and cybersecurity. It integrates the DHS framework’s four levels of PNT resilience while also providing enhanced level-four resilience, the highest level for trusted PNT services assurance.

“For industries and governments, timing is now a critical service in need of urgent protection,” said Gil Biran, general manager, Oscilloquartz, ADVA. “Being open and scalable, it offers an end-to-end range of cost-effective solutions… for augmented resilience, robustness and cybersecurity.”

Technology evaluation capabilities inaugurated in demonstration for U.S. Department of Homeland Seurity

NextNav and Satelles Inc. have partnered on an alternative positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) testbed in the San Francisco Bay area.

Designed and managed by NextNav with a timing source from Satelles, the testbed creates scenarios and conditions to rigorously test the precision and resilience of alternative PNT solutions, allowing technologies to be evaluated in the absence of signals from GPS and other GNSS.

NextNav used the testbed to demonstrate the precision and resilience of the company’s TerraPoiNT network in a GPS-denied environment using STL from Satelles as its absolute timing source. This demonstration for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) showcased the timing accuracy and resilience of TerraPoiNT, which delivered timing synchronization better than 50 nanoseconds in urban and semi-urban settings.

As a source of GPS/GNSS-independent time that the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) determined is highly consistent with Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) — including in deep indoor environments — STL provided the timing signal for the demo instead of GPS.

The advent of the alternative PNT testbed is timely given the recent publication of “Understanding Vulnerabilities of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing” by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (part of DHS). This important CISA publication urges owners and operators of critical infrastructure to adopt the responsible use of PNT as defined in Executive Order 13905. The new testbed will be used to demonstrate applications for emergency services, telecommunications, financial markets, the electrical grid, and other critical infrastructure sectors.

“Demonstrating the accuracy and resilience of alternative PNT solutions is integral in validating the capabilities of alternative PNT solutions and, ultimately, increasing adoption across use cases and applications,” said Ashu Pande, TerraPoiNT VP at NextNav. “With the development of this testbed, we can emulate real world deployment scenarios and can more effectively instill confidence across the PNT industry in the viability of alternate PNT solutions.”

“The development of this testbed will enable the rigorous, transparent, and replicable testing of alternative PNT solutions,” said Christina Riley, VP of Commercial PNT at Satelles. “We’re excited to be integrated as the GNSS-independent timing reference for this alternative PNT testbed and are looking forward to continuing our collaborative work to build stronger PNT solutions to augment GPS globally.”

The U.S. Department of Transportation categorized TerraPoiNT from NextNav and STL from Satelles as the top-ranked PNT systems in its technology demonstration report released in January. The testbed collaboration between these complementary alternative PNT service providers underscores the companies’ commitment to promoting the adoption of multiple technologies that complement and augment GPS/GNSS to protect the operations of critical infrastructure.

First, there was one. In July 1995, the U.S. Air Force declared the Global Positioning System had met all the requirements for full operational capability (FOC). Soon thereafter, there were two. In December of that same year, Russia’s Globalnaya Navigazionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema (Global Navigation Satellite System, or GLONASS), also achieved FOC. For a quarter century, that was it.

Then, last year, the number doubled, as both the European Union’s Galileo and China’s BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS, named after the Big Dipper asterism, which is known in Chinese as ) achieved FOC.

The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS, aka Navigation Indian Constellation, or NavIC, which means “sailor” or “navigator” in Hindi) and Japan’s Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS, also known as Michibiki) are not global yet, but plan to become so. Currently, NavIC is an autonomous regional satellite navigation system, and NavIC-based trackers are compulsory on commercial vehicles in India. QZSS currently complements GPS to improve coverage in East Asia and Oceania, but Japan plans to have an operational constellation of seven satellites for autonomous capability by 2023. The Korea Positioning System (KPS) plans to join the party by 2035.

Who’s next? Will it be another country or a private company? Given that the state-sponsored systems are free to end users, I don’t see what the business model would be for a private GNSS constellation, unless it were to piggyback on one built mainly for another purpose.

Surveyors who have begun to routinely use three or more constellations are over the moon. One, quoted in this month’s cover story, recalls that “the use of GPS for construction staking was an extremely risky proposition” because its residuals exceeded most construction tolerances. Using multiple GNSS constellations, however, has increased confidence in the accuracy of results to the point that some construction companies are relying on GNSS receivers for staking. Additionally, multi-constellation receivers can now increasingly be used under tree canopies and against structures, whether natural or built.

Whatever their mix of military, political and commercial motivations for building, deploying and operating their own GNSS constellations in addition to the original two, the European Union, China, India, Japan, Korea and whichever entity may follow are greatly improving satellite-based positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) for all users everywhere — by increasing accuracy, shortening the time to first fix, and making GNSS more impervious to jamming and spoofing.

In 1978, the year that the U.S. Department of Defense launched the first NAVSTAR GPS satellite (“NAVSTAR” was later dropped from the system’s name), Neil Young sang “Four Strong Winds” (originally written by Ian Tyson and performed by him with his wife Sylvia as the Canadian folk-duo Ian and Sylvia).

Now, GNSS has “four strong winds,” two lighter ones and several more breezes to follow. As a sailor and a navigator, I welcome them heartily. As this magazine’s editor-in-chief, I don’t mind that, like Jeep, Kleenex, Popsicle and Xerox, GPS probably will stick in popular culture as a generic term for global satellite navigation systems way past its accurate description of what is in the box.

Matteo Luccio | Editor-in-Chief
mluccio@northcoastmedia.net

Hexagon AB, a global leader in digital reality solutions, has acquired the Jovix software and services business from Atlas RFID Solutions LLC of Birmingham, Alabama.

Jovix is a material tracking software developed specifically for the construction industry, providing project decision-makers with real-time, actionable data regarding material status and location.

The cloud-based and mobile configurable workflow platform offers visibility and traceability into the status and location of materials throughout the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) lifecycle. This streamlined process, coined “material readiness” by Jovix, ensures construction crews have required materials without delay to complete their work according to plan. This is achieved by fully digitizing the supply chain to provide real-time, geo-contextual, and relational visibility from fabrication to installation.

Jovix combines web-based server software with information from multiple types of sensor tags and readers to automate previously manual, paper-based data-collection workflows about the status and location of material as it moves throughout the construction supply chain.

The software has been deployed in 25 countries on more than 650 job sites, including multibillion-dollar oil and gas and chemical construction projects. There are more than 7,500 Jovix users worldwide.

“The acquisition supports our continued expansion into the procurement, fabrication, and construction market,” said Hexagon President and CEO Ola Rollén. “By removing impediments to productivity that result from material management issues intending to reduce material wait times to zero, Jovix provides value for owner-operators, EPC firms, contractors, fabricators, and suppliers.”

Jovix will be fully consolidated as of Oct. 1, operating within Hexagon’s Project Portfolio Management division. The acquisition has no significant impact on Hexagon’s earnings.

Celestia Technologies Group (CTG) is taking part in the ADACORSA project, a European initiative designed to unlock the potential of long-range and beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) drones and give Europe a world-class drone industry.

ADACORSA — Airborne Data Collection on Resilient System Architecture — is a major collaborative project launched in May 2020 that aims to demonstrate the safety and efficiency of drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in extended out-of-line-of-sight operation ranges.

Specifically, it draws on European expertise in developing sensor and communication technologies for UAVs to underpin their role and reliable capability in long-range applications, including observation, analysis and transport, taking them one step further toward being integrated into conventional airspace.

ADASCORA also seeks to increase public and regulatory acceptance of modern UAV or drone technology. More than 49 specialist companies from 12 European countries are expected to contribute know-how and practical support. The project also aims to research and develop innovative components and systems for airborne observation and detection, telecommunication and data processing along the electronics value-chain.

Task Forces Established

To meet ADACORSA’s ambitious targets, task forces have been set up, one of which will be led by CTG. The company will lead the development of electronic components for reliable and fail-operational environment perception and run one project demonstrator designed to integrate unmanned aircraft systems safely into the common European airspace and ensure that they operate correctly in a multi-unmanned aircraft system environment.

CTG is a Dutch supplier and part of a pan-European company group providing innovative technology products, systems and services to space, aerospace, defense, telecommunications and scientific markets.

Galileo + EGNOS Transponder

CTG will use its expertise in on-board UAV electronics to develop a lightweight, high-performance transponder capable of sending and receiving accurate identification and location data for unmanned aerial vehicles.

Positioning will be based on Galileo, supplemented by its European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), allowing all airspace users to know the location of the vehicle and contribute to safety while supporting other on-board systems such as detect-and-avoid equipment.

The transponder will be based on conventional aviation technologies such as Mode S Interrogator and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) and will integrate new concepts including network identification, meaning the vehicle can fly safely in various scenarios. These include in locations close to airports, in drone fleet operations and within the U-Space environment. U-space is a set of European services and procedures designed to support safe, efficient and secure access to airspace for drones.

ADACORSA has received funding from the ECSEL Joint Undertaking (JU) under grant agreement No. 876019. The JU receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program and Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Romania, France, Sweden, Cyprus, Greece, Lithuania, Portugal, Italy, Finland and Turkey.

Skycatch is offering new data-capture capabilities for the DJI Matrice 300 through its proprietary Flight1x software — a key component of the company’s High Precision Package.

The High Precision Package provides mining operations with cloud or edge-based data processing that enables viewing terrain in 4D, automated RTK/PPK industrial drone management, and fast edge processing with data visibility in minutes.

Built on technology adopted by companies Komatsu Mining and AngloAmerican, Flight1x outperforms traditional off-the-shelf data mapping tools by including purpose-built flight automation software for the M300, leveraging DJI’s L1 and P1 sensors.

The solution delivers data and network security via Skycatch servers in the United States, coupled with advanced automation features like a 3D first-mission planner, mining-focused workflows and deep integration into Skycatch’s data analytics platform Datahub.

The Flight1x software will work with the M300 to help mining engineers quickly extract data. Features include:

• fully automated capture, extraction and processing of high-precision 3D point clouds
• highly specialized mission-planning automation to extract data from complex terrains such as high walls
• complete industrial data capture and processing for repeatable and automated spot inspection
• consistent data-retrieval analysis of thousands of terrain spots in a single location by an automated industrial drone
• fully automated aerial robot technology built on Skycatch’s automation platform, eliminating the need for manual pilots and reducing risk of human error.

Wingcopter drones recently transported blood samples 26 kilometers (16 miles) between Greifswald and Wolgast, Germany. The flights were carried out by Greifswald University Medical Center in cooperation with DRF Luftrettung and Wingcopter as part of the MV|LIFE|DRONE Challenge (MVLD-Challenge) project of the hospital’s Department of Anesthesiology.

The  project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Energy, Infrastructure and Digitalization of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, is a partnership between University Medical Center Greifswald and DRF Luftrettung. The goal of the project is to improve structures of regional emergency care by integrating unmanned aerial vehicles (UAS, Unmanned Aerial Systems) into the rescue chain and into medical emergency transports.

The flights beyond the pilots’ visual line of sight (BVLOS) carried a pneumatic tube including 250 grams of blood samples. The Wingcopter completed the 26-kilometer route in an average of 18 minutes, nearly twice as fast as ground-based transport.

The use of Wingcopter drones could significantly speed up emergency medical care in rural areas and help save lives. In the event of a blood transfusion being necessary at short notice, for example, blood samples from Wolgast District Hospital must be transported to Greifswald University Hospital for analysis in order to determine the appropriate donor blood.

“With this project, we have demonstrated that we can also improve medical care and quality of life in rural areas in Germany,” said Ansgar Kadura, co-founder and CSO of Wingcopter. “With our new unmanned aerial vehicle, the Wingcopter 198, this can be carried out even more efficiently in the future. We look forward to continued collaboration with the project team at the Department of Anesthesiology as part of the MV|LIFE|DRONE Challenge and beyond.”

The Greifswald University Medical Center seeks to establish permanent flight connections between the medical center in Greifswald and hospitals in the surrounding area as soon as possible. Drones can also be used to support first responders on site by quickly transporting medications, transfusions or emergency medical equipment such as defibrillators to the scene of an accident.

All four current GNSS and two regional systems have been built and are operated by public agencies. Many correction services and complementary PNT services are operated by private companies. 

Going forward, what do you expect the division of labor to be between the public and private sectors in building and maintaining PNT capabilities? What should it be?

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“The space race was championed by governments. Space travel, communications and other technologies were born from government exploration into space. Today we see many private companies engaged in space. Several are intent on supplementing GNSS navigation, and some envision competing. Private companies have a way to go if they plan to compete with systems like GPS, but competition is often at the center of innovation and may benefit everyone.”
— Ellen Hall
Spirent Federal Systems 

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“GNSS and regional systems are established and sustained to meet the needs of the governments and public agencies that operate them. They cover wide areas and provide services to extremely diverse user communities at levels of performance based on resources that are justified by user requirements and limited by technical affordability. When the global/regional service levels don’t meet the needs of a particular user group or require backup for security, the opportunity is opened for other agencies or private companies to create augmentations and complements to meet the additional needs. The mix is variable and will be determined by the user groups and the market.”
— Jules McNeff
Overlook Systems Technologies 

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“There is really no single ‘correct’ answer or specific division of labor between public- and private-sector entities in GNSS. The situation we see today is the result of decades of constructive and successful ad hoc evolution of roles among and between public- and private-sector entities. Public agencies are better suited to provide foundation technologies and infrastructure due to the large costs and long timelines associated with establishing the constellations and maintaining stable and consistent service. The private sector is better positioned to provide variety and timely flexibility in developing innovative solutions to the broad range of constantly emerging user requirements across all market segments. This unofficial and continually evolving division of labor has worked successfully and continues to adapt to the evolving world of PNT.”
—Michael Swiek
GPS Alliance