Product category: Embedded Software and Operating Systems
News Release from: SiRF Technology | Subject: SiRFDRive 2.0
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial Team on 23 May 2005

Software maximises GPS positional accuracy

New GPS/dead reckoning software offers a novel approach to maximising position availability and accuracy for automotive navigation and telematics applications at a significantly lower cost

SiRF Technology has unveiled its new, patent pending, SiRFDRive 2.0 GPS/dead reckoning software, a novel approach to maximising position availability and accuracy for automotive navigation and telematics applications at a significantly lower cost. Already receiving notable interest from leading OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, SiRFDRive 2.0 reduces system costs by tapping the vehicle databus as a source of distributed sensor information, enabling automakers and tier 1 manufacturers to eliminate the cost of a dedicated automotive gyro and greatly reducing installation costs.

SiRFDRive 2.0 requires only a single connection to the vehicle bus to supply the dead reckoning speed and heading measurements to complement GPS.

Telematics and navigation systems need these measurements to validate and correct GPS fixes during signal blockage and multipath interference, such as when traveling through tunnels or urban canyons.

SiRFDRive 2.0 complements GPS satellite measurements with independent vehicle speed sensor and anti-lock brake sensor inputs provided over the vehicle databus.

These measurements are typically in the form of speed tick rates, angular wheel velocity or linear wheel velocity from the existing active or passive ABS sensors on at least two parallel wheels on the same axle.

SiRFDRive 2 is compatible with all SiRFstarII-based GPS receiver chipsets, but manufacturers can achieve the greatest cost benefit when SiRFDRive 2.0 is used in conjunction with the rich peripheral features of the new SiRFstarIIA GPS system on chip optimised for automotive applications to dramatically reduce the total bill of materials costs.

'We saw an excellent opportunity to help drive down overall system costs by developing a software that takes advantage of the information already available on today's modern vehicle platforms', said Kanwar Chadha, founder and Vice President of SiRF Technology.

'The combined SiRFstarIIA/SiRFDRive 2.0 solution will enable automakers to add high-performance navigation and telematics systems to their vehicles at prices affordable to the mainstream consumers'.

Because SiRFDRive 2.0 completely eliminates the need for telematics and navigation systems to have sensors tied directly to them, automakers have much greater freedom to install these products without any of the usual location and orientation constraints imposed on them by conventional systems with integrated sensors such as the gyro.

Consequently the logistics for the auto electronics equipment suppliers and OEM customer is greatly simplified as only one product configuration is needed for all conceivable installation orientations resulting in inventory and installation cost efficiencies.

By using the existing sensors, SiRFDRive 2.0 eliminates the addition of superfluous sensors and associated electronic components in the vehicle for the telematics and navigation system, lowering overall cost while improving reliability.

The SiRFDRive 2.0 system is self-calibrating, and will continuously calibrate all the sensors using GPS data when the GPS position is available.

When GPS signals are not available, the system will navigate in dead reckoning mode until the sensor calibration data no longer is valid, and if any of the sensors break or become unreliable, the system will detect this, notify the application and resort to GPS-only navigation.

SiRFDRive 2.0 is already getting significant interest from leading equipment suppliers, OEMs, and telematics suppliers such as LG, General Motors and OnStar as an enabler of next generation of enhanced and new telematics services based on its cost efficiencies and high performance.

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