NovAtel, a subsidiary of Canada-based technology company Hexagon, which specializes in positioning technology, has introduced the PIM222A, part of a new family of automotive GNSS positioning products for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving systems.
The company says the unit is built with automotive-qualified hardware in an easy-to-integrate package that leverages SPAN technology from NovAtel. SPAN harnesses satellite location and inertial systems to provide accurate position data in urban environments that challenge GNSS availability. Deeply coupled GNSS receivers and inertial measurement units (IMUs) are claimed to ensure continuous availability of position, velocity and attitude, even when satellite signals are briefly blocked.
“I’m excited to introduce the PIM222A, truly the best of both worlds for high-performance GNSS and automotive standards. It really helps our customers jump-start their development activity for high-precision GNSS, and it fully supports performance for all levels of autonomy, ADAS and positioning needs,” said Gordon Heidinger, segment manager for automotive and safety-critical systems at Hexagon.
The PIM222A was created in collaboration with STMicroelectronics. It is a lightweight, power-efficient, solder-down module that is reported to maximize flexibility for integration. Hexagon says that the receiver design can be applied to low-, medium- and high-production volumes while retaining a rich array of features, including options such as multi-frequency, multi-constellation, RTK and dual-antenna precision. Development kits for the PIM222A are available now for integrators looking to trial the technology.