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Apr 2007 | Comments Off

INDUSTRY | LBS | GPS | GIS | REMOTE SENSING | GALILEO UPDATE

China cracks down on illegal surveying, mapping

China continues cracking down on illegal surveying and mapping and investigate and punish leaks of state secrets, said an of?cial from the State Bureau of Survey and Mapping (SBSM). Seven government departments including SBSM, Ministry of Information Industry and National Administration for Protection of State Secrets have pledged to strengthen control of the geographical information market. A total of 759 cases of illegal surveying and mapping were found in 2006, and many of the cases involved foreign organizations and individuals. Last year, two Japanese scholars were ?ned a total of 80,000 yuan and deported for mapping the coordinates of an airport and water facilities in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It was feared their results could be used for military purposes.

Singapore police gets vehicle tracking system

Astrata Group Inc.has supplied a Vehicle Tracking and Immobilization System for Singapore’s Police Force. The Police were able to monitor a ?eet of cement mixers that had been ?tted with tracking solution and had been granted access to a restricted area (where most vehicles were denied during the conference). http://houston.dbusinessnews.com

In Iran, cheetahs collared with GPS devices

An international team of scientists led by the Wildlife Conservation Society working in Iran has successfully ?tted two Asiatic cheetahs with GPS collars. This would help track highly endangered population of big cats. http://caribjournal.com

South Korea aims to develop GPS-guided missiles

According to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, South Korea would spend 43 billion won to develop GPS-guided missiles by develop GPS-guided missiles by 2012. The project is aimed at equipping currently-used missiles on ?ghter jets with the advanced navigational and surveying system. http:// english.yonhapnews.co.kr

Research leads to more ef?cient in-car GPS

Researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, have developed the ?rst receiver that can pick up both the L1 and L2C GPS frequencies, as well as the signal from the ?rst prototype Galileo satellite. www.sciencedaily.com

GLONASS should be cheaper and better

The global navigation system GLONASS should be cheaper and of better quality than the GPS system. A total sum of 9.88 billion rubles (USD 380 million) has been earmarked for GLONASS program in 2007. In 2006, the ?gures were 23 billion rubles, respectively. According to Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov, Russian global navigation satellite system will be put into operation by the end of the year orbiting 18 space aircrafts of the GLONASS system by the end of 2007. www. kommersant.com, http://en.rian.ru

Poland deploys nationwide GNSS infrastructure network

Trimble has been chosen by the Polish National Of?ce of Geodesy and Cartography, GUGiK, to supply 78 Continuous Operating Reference Station (CORS) receivers and Trimble VRS (Virtual Reference Station) technology to establish a nationwide GNSS infrastructure network. The VRS network will provide a geospatial infrastructure for surveying, engineering and GIS professionals that enable high accuracy real-time kinematic (RTK) GNSS positioning without the need of separate base stations or software. www.trimble.com

GPS breakthrough set to revolutionise undersea navigation

Engineers working for the US Of?ce of Naval Research have found a simple way to let submarines and divers get an accurate GPS ?x. It may lead to a revolution in navigation, as GPS would not work underwater due to the inability of radio signals to pass through water. According to New Scientist, a base station is tethered to the seabed at known depth and known GPS location. A submersible anywhere in the area sends out a sonar request pulse to which the base station replies with a signal that gives its GPS position and depth, as well as the bearing angle from which such request arrived. The submersible then uses its own depth, the round trip pulse time, and the bearing angle sent by the base to calculate its own position. www.dailyindia.com

GPS to be used for identifying unauthorised hoardings

GPS shall be used to reduce visual pollution caused by illegal hoardings across New Delhi, India, which will help in keeping illegal hoarding at bay. A private agency will identify unauthorised hoardings, prepare an exhaustive data about them and constantly update of?cials on their status. All authorised hoarding shall have a computer chip that will carry its unique identi?cation number that can be traced. www.hindu.com

GPS navigation plan to help blind

Il Village, a ?rm in Turin in northern Italy has been developing a service called Easy Walk aimed at giving blind people greater independence and mobility. It uses a mobile phone that runs the Symbian operating system, a small Bluetooth GPS receiver, text to speech software called Talks (though rival products are also compatible) and a call centre that will operate around the clock seven days a week. http://news.bbc.co.uk