Courtesy of u-blox and MBC develop the world’s first fully integrated L1/L2 RTK solution for centimeter-level positioning applications

MBC’s MRP‑2000 positioning solution integrates the u‑blox ZED‑F9P high precision GNSS module.

Thalwil, Switzerland – December 11, 2018 – u‑blox (SIX:UBXN), a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies, has announced the results of its collaboration with Korean broadcast media company MBC. With assistance from u‑blox, MBC has launched an ultra‑compact L1/L2 real time kinematic (RTK) multi‑band device, the MBC MRP‑2000, featuring a u‑blox ZED‑F9P high precision GNSS module. The solution is the first to offer the Korean market a GNSS RTK receiver and wireless access to a GNSS correction service in a single box.

To achieve centimeter‑level position accuracy, high precision GNSS receivers combine multi‑band satellite signal reception and GNSS correction data. In addition to mitigating positioning errors incurred as the satellite signals cross the ionosphere, multi‑band reception significantly speeds up the time it takes the receiver to determine its location. The ZED‑F9P process GNSS correction data, received via a wireless data connection, using integrated RTK algorithms. For uninterrupted centimeter‑level accuracy, it requires constant data access over the air.

Weighing just 50 g, the compact and extremely low power MRP‑2000 provides centimeter‑level positioning accuracy for a wide range of portable and mobile applications such as autonomous vehicles, drones, and survey equipment. It comes with a subscription to MBC’s RTK correction service, delivered nationwide using digital media broadcasting (DMB) networks, with LTE fallback.

The u‑blox ZED‑F9P GNSS receiver featured in the MRP‑2000 keeps the cost, size, and power consumption of the solution low. With advanced multi‑band RTK algorithms integrated on the chip, MBC was able to enable centimeter‑level positioning with no additional hardware or third party RTK libraries, cutting the time it took to bring the solution to market.

“By integrating our ZED‑F9P, a mass market RTK receiver, with Korea’s low cost DMB connectivity channel to offer automotive and industrial applications access to a nationwide correction service, MBC was able to dramatically reduce the cost of ownership of centimeter‑level positioning technology,” says KS Son, Country Manager, u‑blox Korea.

“Collaborating with u‑blox helped us develop the MRP‑2000, the first fully integrated positioning solution that can use RTK data from the DMB network as the primary source of location correction information, only switching to the LTE network in areas of poor DMB reception,” says Seung‑Ho Lee, Director of Spatial Information Business, MBC. “This gives the user an extremely high connectivity coverage delivering centimeter- level performance across the entire South Korea peninsula,” he adds.

About u‑blox

u‑blox (SIX:UBXN) is a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies for the automotive, industrial, and consumer markets. Their solutions let people, vehicles, and machines determine their precise position and communicate wirelessly over cellular and short range networks. With a broad portfolio of chips, modules, and a growing ecosystem of product supporting data services, u‑blox is uniquely positioned to empower its customers to develop innovative solutions for the Internet of Things, quickly and cost‑effectively. With headquarters in Thalwil, Switzerland, the company is globally present with offices in Europe, Asia, and the USA.

Find us on Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter @ublox and YouTube

u‑blox contact:
KS Son
Country Manager, u‑blox Korea
Phone +82 2 542 0861
info_kr@u-blox.com  

About MBC

MBC is a public broadcaster whose largest shareholder is public organization Foundation for Broadcast Culture while it operates on advertising. MBC is the No. 1 broadcast network in Korea in terms of reliability, popularity and influence.

Established in 1961, MBC has been contributing to the development of the media industry, covering 98% of percent of the nation with a network of 16 regional stations and 8 subsidiaries. Today, it’s a multimedia group with 1 terrestrial TV channel, 3 radio channels, 5 cable channels, 5 satellite channels and 4 DMB channels. MBC provides useful information and entertains the viewers through its channels, while focusing on the core value of delivering customer satisfaction based on fairness, reliability, creativity and professionalism with the goal of becoming one of the most competitive media groups in the 21st century.​

MBC contact:
Seung‑Ho Lee
Director of Spatial Information Business, MBC
Phone +82 2 789 1646
victorlee@mbc.co.kr

http://zooom.kr

Courtesy of u-blox : ERM to launch a vehicle tracking device with a built-in Wi‑Fi hotspot

Thalwil, Switzerland – November 8, 2018 – u‑blox (SIX:UBXN), a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies, is pleased to announce the StarLink TrackerWi‑Fi, an advanced vehicle tracking device produced by ERM Advanced Telematics, a provider of device‑based telematics solutions. The device combines u‑blox GNSS, 4G and Wi‑Fi Technology eliminating the need to equip vehicles with a separate mobile Wi‑Fi hotspot. The StartLink TrackerWi‑Fi has wide‑ranging solutions for applications in connected car, telematics and vehicle diagnostic, fleet management, vehicle security, usage‑based insurance, and rental and leasing service companies.

“We saw an opportunity to provide more values to our customers by adding Wi‑Fi hot spot functionality to our StarLink Tracker, our leading telematics product, but knew that we had to be quick to stay ahead of the game,” says Kfir Lavi, Senior Vice President of ERM Advanced Telematics. “Our partners are always at the top of our priorities, and we are working to adapt our offerings to the market demands and the changing needs of their customers. Working with u‑blox as the provider of the positioning and wireless communication technology helped us move from concept to commercialization in under six months and provide our partners with an advanced product in a short time.”

The Internet of Things (IoT) and connected car initiatives are transforming vehicular fleet management, providing rental car companies and transportation and logistics firms with tools to track vehicles, preemptively detect and diagnose disturbances from a distance, and monitor the behavior of their drivers in real‑time. ERM already has over 1.8 million vehicle fleet tracking devices deployed on roads world‑wide.

As onboard Wi‑Fi becomes increasingly wide‑spread, many companies are fitting vehicles with Wi‑Fi hotspots to offer drivers and passengers Internet access. With its integrated Wi‑Fi hotspot, ERM’s StarLink TrackerWi‑Fi makes it easier by letting users tap into the cellular 4G connectivity it draws on to transfer telematics data back to the fleet manager. Not only does this make it possible to send real‑time telematics data to the driver’s smart device or onboard infotainment system, it also reduces the number of SIM cards needed from one per device to one per vehicle.

Sourcing the GNSS tracking, cellular 4G LTE, and Wi‑Fi technology from u‑blox played a key role in achieving the device’s fast time‑to‑market. By using u‑blox’s pre‑tested positioning and communications modules with integrated software, the manufacturer was able to cut the time needed for production and development by several months.

“This successful collaboration demonstrates that we have evolved from a provider of individual technologies, namely GNSS positioning, cellular 4G connectivity, or short range radio communication, to a provider of solutions that bundle these technologies,” says Thomas Seiler, CEO of u‑blox. “We are seeing increased demand for such bundled solutions and are convinced that the close integration of our technology portfolio offers our customers the unique ability to jump‑start even challenging projects on extremely short notice.”

About u‑blox
u‑blox (SIX:UBXN) is a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies for the automotive, industrial, and consumer markets. Their solutions let people, vehicles, and machines determine their precise position and communicate wirelessly over cellular and short range networks. With a broad portfolio of chips, modules, and a growing ecosystem of product supporting data services, u‑blox is uniquely positioned to empower its customers to develop innovative solutions for the Internet of Things, quickly and cost‑effectively. With headquarters in Thalwil, Switzerland, the company is globally present with offices in Europe, Asia, and the USA.

Find us on Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter @ublox and YouTube

u‑blox contact:
Natacha Seitz, PR Manager, u‑blox
Phone: + 41 44 722 7388
E‑mail: natacha.seitz@u-blox.com

About ERM Advanced Telematics
ERM Advanced Telematics is an international automotive technology vendor, whose technologies and products are installed in more than 5 million vehicles worldwide. The company’s solutions are based on a range of wireless technologies, including all available cellular communications, RF, Bluetooth and Wi‑Fi. ERM offers a wide range of modular solutions that improve the protection, management, and diagnostics of vehicles, vehicle fleets, and valuable assets, reducing operating costs for both the service provider and the end customer.

(www.ermtelematics.com)

ERM Advanced Telematics contact:
Shir Guy
Public Relations, ERM Advanced Telematics
Phone: + 972 3 941 3313
E‑mail: shir@ermtelematics.com

Courtesy of u-blox : u-blox module certified on T-Mobile US’s new NB-IoT network

u‑blox’s LTE Cat NB1 SARA‑N410 module enables a wide range of IoT applications.

Thalwil, Switzerland – October 2, 2018 – u‑blox (SIX:UBXN), a leading global provider of positioning and wireless communication technologies, today announced that T‑Mobile US has certified its LTE Cat NB1 SARA‑N410 module to run on its new NB‑IoT network, the first NB‑IoT network to launch in the US.

At an ultra compact 16 x 26 mm, SARA‑N410 supports ultra low power consumption, making it ideal for cost optimized long‑term solutions required by many IoT applications. Those include utilities such as gas, water and electricity metering, smart cities for instance with street lighting, parking sensors and waste management, smart buildings with building automation, HVAC and access control, as well as industrial monitoring and control.

Critical firmware updates can be delivered securely with u‑blox proprietary uFOTA (firmware over the air) client/server solution that uses LWM2M, a light and compact protocol ideal for IoT applications. This enables customers to maintain the hardware over the full lifetime of the product for future enhancements to features and functionalities, especially in the case of crucial applications running on devices deployed over long periods of time. SARA‑N410 also supports non‑IP data delivery, a more efficient way of transmitting data for throughput‑constrained low power wide area (LPWA) technologies.

SARA‑N410’s nested design provides easy migration between u‑blox 2G, 3G and 4G modules, while enabling future‑proof, seamless mechanical scalability across technologies. With a temperature range of -40 to +85°C, the module supports Power Save Mode (PSM) and Extended Discontinuous Reception (e‑DRX), which can extend battery lifetime up to 10 years.

3GPP Coverage Enhancement permits the module’s connectivity to reach deeper into buildings and even underground when compared to other air interface technologies such as GSM or Cat 1.

“The u‑blox SARA‑N410 is now certified for T‑Mobile’s new NB‑IoT network and thereby enhances u‑blox’s position as a leader in Narrowband IoT, a globally recognized standard with extended coverage and low power consumption,” said Patty Felts, Principal Product Manager, Product Center Cellular at u‑blox.

About u‑blox
u‑blox (SIX:UBXN) is a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies for the automotive, industrial, and consumer markets. Their solutions let people, vehicles, and machines determine their precise position and communicate wirelessly over cellular and short range networks. With a broad portfolio of chips, modules, and a growing ecosystem of product supporting data services, u‑blox is uniquely positioned to empower its customers to develop innovative solutions for the Internet of Things, quickly and cost‑effectively. With headquarters in Thalwil

Find us on Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter @ublox and YouTube

u‑blox contact:
Patty Felts
Principal Product Manager, Product Center Cellular at u‑blox
Phone +1 858 847 9611
patty.felts@u-blox.com

u‑blox AG
Zürcherstrasse 68
8800 Thalwil
Switzerland
Phone +41 44 722 74 44
Fax +41 44 722 74 47
info@u-blox.com
www.u‑blox.com

Courtesy of u-blox : Industrial Markets

In industrial markets, we see such varying applications as manufacturing, processing, instrumentation, energy management, survey monitoring, asset tracking, condition monitoring, remote control and monitoring systems. The u‑blox products are designed and developed for such applications, saving both time and money for improved efficacy and operation. We enable companies just like yours to truly succeed in the digital age, where most of your operations are likely to occur “online.”

Remote monitoring & control

The ability to consistently monitor and control operations in real‑time is of significant benefit to industrial applications, allowing you to gain in speed, accuracy and efficiency. For instance, let’s say you own a remote wind turbine park. Traditionally, you would regularly have to visit the park to monitor the status of a wind turbine. Should you instead embed cellular connectivity, you can remotely monitor the status of each wind turbine and control them individually. This reduces time and money spent on maintenance and allows you to send workers to the location only when they are truly needed. You can also monitor efficiency and production rates via cloud‑based, connected analytics tools.

Asset tracking

For full operational visibility and decision making through the industrial value chain, it is crucial to be able to accurately track assets and personnel. For instance, let’s say you own a warehouse. Imagine the possibilities if you could track a pallet real‑time as it arrived by truck, proceeded on a conveyor belt, to when it was picked up by an unmanned forklift and then put in storage. The asset is tracked from arrival to storage, using indoor short range radio connectivity beacons on its path. Outdoors, the asset is tracked via GNSS technology providing location and time stamps with the data transmitted via cellular connectivity.

Connected tools

With connected tools, operators would only use the data and resources they actually need. For instance, let’s say you own an automotive assembly plant. The operator interacts with the vehicle with tools that are wirelessly connected to the network, receiving and sending data needed only for this particular vehicle. Thereby, you minimize time and resources spent, while making the operator more flexible and efficient at the same time.

Industrial IoT/ Industry 4.0

Truly unique in its ability to provide efficient, flexible, and critical control over operations and information, Industrial IoT (IIoT) allows for the full‑scale connectivity your company needs for its everyday operations. You can track and connect every step of the process, from industrial sensors to transfer of information to control systems and data analysis.
For instance, let’s say you own a plant that operates based on IIoT technology. When a truck arrives with supplies, the truck and its goods are tracked with both position and time. Data from sensors within the truck can be communicated via short range wireless links. Data is sent and received over cellular radio networks to enter goods into the local inventory system as the goods are moved onto the production line. The IIoT ecosystem described is built up by a variety of environmental sensors (temperature, pressure, humidity, etc.) that connect wirelessly to a programmable logic controller (PLC) and then via Ethernet to a SCADA system and control room. The final result is full insight into your entire operations.

Courtesy of u-blox

Thalwil, Switzerland – May 24, 2018 – u‑blox (SIX:UBXN), a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies, and Arduino, providers of the world’s leading open‑source hardware and software ecosystem, introduced four new boards to their MKR family, delivering enhanced wireless connectivity options for IoT applications. Previously Arduino adopted u‑blox for their MKR GSM 1400, now one of the most popular boards of the MKR family for its unique characteristics and robustness.

Arduino introduced the MKR family and form factor to address IoT use cases by focusing on a standard blue print including a hardware crypto chip for enhanced security, a LiPo charger for power management, and an ARM Cortex M0 microcontroller. The MKR family offers a wide range of connectivity options, from low power long range to more traditional options, to satisfy the most stringent user requirements for IoT applications.

One of the boards released is the MKR WIFI 1010, a Cortex M0‑based board that provides Wi‑Fi connectivity to IoT projects. With a highly optimized design it integrates the globally certified u‑blox NINA‑W102 stand‑alone multi‑radio module delivering Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. Featuring an open CPU, the NINA‑W102 allows Arduino to run their own application right on the module, offloading communication tasks from the user‑programmable Arduino CPU and increasing the board’s power efficiency.

Two more new boards incorporate the u‑blox NINA‑W102. The MKR Vidor 4000 is the first‑ever Arduino board featuring an FPGA (field‑programmable gate array) chip coupled with an innovative development environment, which aims to democratize and radically simplify access to the world of FPGAs. The Uno WiFi Rev 2 aims at making it even easier to deploy products that need Wi‑Fi connectivity.

In addition Arduino expanded its cellular offering with the MKR NB 1500, which hosts a u‑blox SARA‑R410M cellular module providing LTE Cat NB1 and LTE‑M cellular connectivity that is pre‑certified for global use. Also equipped with an ARM Cortex M0 microcontroller, the MKR NB 1500 is fully geared towards IoT applications with low demands for bandwidth and data volumes and is optimized for ultra‑low power consumption, enabling highly efficient battery‑powered applications.

The new boards feature industrial grade communication modules with an extended temperature range and superior guaranteed reliability, making them attractive to professional users seeking to develop small volume products or quickly prototype new concepts and ideas.

“In order to grow a full portfolio of connectivity boards for professional IoT use cases, we needed to find a supplier offering a superior quality and easy‑to‑use, globally certified range of modules in line with our brand strategy. Their roadmap and the compatibility between the products offered by u‑blox sealed the deal for us,” says Fabio Violante, CEO of Arduino. “We also liked their approach to the educational market, that is in line with our vision.”

“For us at u‑blox, working with Arduino helps us extend our reach to a broad community of young engineers and tech enthusiasts, who now have an easy and affordable way to access our technology,” says Michael Ammann, Senior Principal Market Development at u­‑blox. “We look forward to further expanding our partnership in the future.”

Purchase the new MKR boards on the Arduino website.

About u‑blox
u‑blox (SIX:UBXN) is a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies for the automotive, industrial, and consumer markets. Their solutions let people, vehicles, and machines determine their precise position and communicate wirelessly over cellular and short range networks. With a broad portfolio of chips, modules, and a growing ecosystem of product supporting data services, u‑blox is uniquely positioned to empower its customers to develop innovative solutions for the Internet of Things, quickly and cost‑effectively. With headquarters in Thalwil, Switzerland, the company is globally present with offices in Europe, Asia, and the USA. Find us on Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter @ublox and YouTube

About Arduino
Arduino is the world’s leading open‑source hardware and software ecosystem. The Company offers a range of software tools, hardware platforms and documentation enabling almost anybody to be creative with technology. Arduino is a popular tool for IoT product development as well as one of the most successful tools for STEM/STEAM education. Hundreds of thousands of designers, engineers, students, developers and makers around the world are using Arduino to innovate in music, games, toys, smart homes, farming, autonomous vehicles, and more.

u‑blox media contact:
Natacha Seitz
PR Manager
Mobile +41 76 436 0788
natacha.seitz@u-blox.com

u‑blox AG
Zürcherstrasse 68
8800 Thalwil
Switzerland
info@u-blox.com
www.u‑blox.com

Arduino media contact:
Kelly Brieger, KBPR
Mobile 650‑704‑1748
Kelly@kbpr.net
www.arduino.cc