GPS World - February 2008 - (Page 27)

THE BUSINESS » MILITARY & GOVERNMENT » SURVEY & CONSTRUCTION National Space Symposium Set The 24th National Space Symposium will take place April 7–10, with speakers including Michael W. Wynne, secretary of the U.S. Air Force (USAF), and Air Force General Victor E. Renuart, commander for NORAD/ USNORTHCOM. Sponsored by the Space Foundation, the annual symposium will be held at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado. James F. Albaugh, Boeing executive vice president and president and CEO of Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, and Jean-Yves LeGall, Arianespace chairman and CEO, will deliver industry keynotes. Experts leading panel discussions include: Lt. Gen. Michael A. Hamel, USAF commander, Space and Missile Systems Center, Air Force Space Command James Oberg, noted space consultant and author Lt. Gen. William L. Shelton, USAF commander, 14th Air Force, Air Force Space Command, and commander, Joint Functional Component Command for Space, U.S. Strategic Command Brig. Gen. Simon P. Worden, USAF (retired), center director, NASA Ames Research Center The symposium’s theme, “Our Expanding Universe 50 Years of Space Exploration,” reflects the continued efforts and advancement in space while acknowledging how far the space industry has come in the last 50 years, the Space Foundation said. It anticipates more than 7,500 registrants, guests, speakers, exhibitors, and media members from across the United States and many foreign countries to attend. Septentrio Signs North American Distribution Deal Western Latitudes, a wholly owned subsidiary of Meridian 104 Inc., has become the latest member of Septentrio's North American distribution network. Western Latitudes, based in Centennial, Colorado, and a reseller of GPS products to the survey and machine control markets, will immediately start providing Septentrio products to their locations across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Belgium-based Septentrio suggested that Western Latitudes would be a key part of its goal to expand the availability of its products in the North American Market. Western Latitudes President David Atkinson cited Septentrio’s ability to provide single-centimeter RTK, including precise heading and 3D attitude measurements, in one compact receiver as an important aspect of its products. Another aspect was its development of contracts with the European Space Agency's Galileo satellite program. U.K.-based CSR announced in January that it had cut the cost of embedded GPS receivers in half through a collaboration with South Korea’s Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co. The resulting products are based on CSR’s GPS software and Samsung’s module hardware. CSR’s software approach eliminates the need for a dedicated GPS baseband; this reduces the cost of the module to less than half that of competitors’ devices, according to the company. INBRIEF Garmin and Panasonic Automotive Systems Co. are collaborating on custom OEM navigation products targeting various vehicle manufacturers, the companies announced January 14. The U.S.based subsidiary of Japanese electronics company Panasonic is a supplier of OEM audio, video, navigation, and information products and systems. Germany's Navigon, which entered the U.S. PND market in 2007, has claimed the fifth spot in the market. In November 2007, it broke into the top five among PND sellers in both units and dollar sales, according to data from market research firm NPD Group. Navigon’s entry-level Navigon 2100 PND was one of the top 10 best-selling GPS units www.gpsworld.com in November. The company has centered its business model around providing real-time traffic data, including it subscription-free for the lifetime of its PNDs. Taiwan's Mitac International Corp. is formally merging its two GPS navigation device subsidiaries— Mio Technology and Navman—but will continue to maintain two brand names. The merger follows Mitac's acquisition of the Navman portable navigation business from Brunswick Corp. in March 2007. The formal merger will create a single operating company with a new brand identity, the company said. Nevertheless, the Navman brand will continue to exist in selected markets, including the United Kingdom, Spain, Australia and New Zealand. MORE ONLINE In-depth Coverage Find more details on these stories at www.gpsworld.com. For the latest GPS news, subscribe to Navigate! daily e-newsletter. February 2008 | GPS World 27 http://www.gpsworld.com http://www.gpsworld.com

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GPS World - February 2008 Contents Out in Front Expert Advice Galileo's Second Coming Soon UPS First to Use ADS-B European Industry Group Galileo Validation 2008 Antenna Survey Tsumani Detection by GPS Classifieds Advertisers Index Seen + Heard

GPS World - February 2008

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