Atmel and u-blox release SuperSense indoor-capable GPS signal tracking

Atmel and u-blox AG have just released SuperSense, a GPS weak signal tracking technology that supports Atmel's ANTARIS GPS chipsets and GPS modules from u-blox. The companies claim the software will allow for accurate GPS navigation inside buildings, in deep urban canyons, and in covered roads. The software also reduces the need for external antennas in car GPS systems, which can instead be mounted in glove compartments or under seats, while apparently still providing the same signal reception.

[Taylor Alexander @ Dec 19th 2005 2:14AM]

Atmel owns.
-Taylor

[b0mb0klat @ Dec 19th 2005 2:14AM]

yeay, more Orwell madness coming!

Whats the fucking point of that thing?
"Huh im lost in a building huh i know lets pay xx$/month so that i can be assisted by my pda to find my way to the fucking toilets...."

Gosh sometimes i wish good old terrian pragmatism "?a-Madmax" could reign again someday ; geeks are really starting to piss me off ; technology is gonna fuck you up as it always did and as it always will.

Use it just for whats needed, not to fill up your weak fightclub-like moronic lives...

[plexitox @ Dec 19th 2005 2:14AM]

b0mb0klat:
you really should do your homework.
1) GPS is a free service to anyone who has a receiver.
2) a GPS receiver is just that, you are not transmitting your location to "big brother" when you use one.
3) the breakthrough with this technology is that GPS can be used in places it wasn't designed to be used in.
imagine this simple pragmatic use that could one day save your whiny ass: a team of firefighters in a blazing building using this technology to orient themselves despite low environmental visibility in a foreign space. this allows them to report their own locations and the locations of survivors and do their job more quickly and safely.

you should really think before spouting off about geeks, its geek tech like this that improves life in ways you don't even recognize.

[mork @ Dec 19th 2005 2:14AM]

my GPSr, like everyones, requires line-of-sight to many satelites. Poster #2 is a dim-wit. This is a breakthrough for many reasons.

When I'm deep in the bush, my GPSr cannot recieve a signal with heavy tree cover - if it does, it is spuradic and inaccurate. Arguably, this is also the time when I need it the most.

I've also pulled it out in downtown city centers and anyone will tell you it is fairly useless on such streets surrounded by tall buildings, etc. So for vehicle navigation and whatnot it is useful.

It's not about getting a map to the nearest bathroom either.. GPS is an amazing and useful technology. I formerly also believed it was a pay-for-service until I investigated it and purchased a GPSr myself.. one of the best purchases I've ever made.

[Russ @ Dec 19th 2005 2:14AM]

They need to adapt this to satellite radio services so we can actually listen to satellite radio in buildings without having to run an external antenna.