SiGe Semiconductor says that it is ready to launch the world’s first Galileo-ready receiver for mass market consumer electronics, which will enable the integration of GPS style navigation services into portable devices including mobile phones.

Galileo is a new satellite system that will greatly enhance navigation and positioning performance compared with the existing GPS system. The combination of GPS and Galileo will improve user experience of location based services by enabling products to determine position data much more consistently, more quickly, and with greater accuracy than with GPS alone. These benefits are expected to drive a significant opportunity, as the global satellite navigation market is expected to reach US$30 billion by the time the Galileo system becomes operational in 2008.

The SE4120 allows consumer device manufacturers to capitalise on this market by designing Galileo-ready systems even as the standards are being finalised. The software-based receiver architecture ensures that changes to the standards can be supported with simple software upgrades. This allows manufacturers to design their systems now, ensuring they are among the first to market with Galileo-ready products. The software-defined architecture also minimises board area, power consumption, and cost - benefits ideal for high-volume portable consumer electronics.
[via cellular-news]

The world’s first Galileo ready receiver for mass market consumer electronics has been launched by SiGe Semiconductor. According to the company, the part will enable the integration of high accuracy navigation services into a range of portable devices.
Galileo is a satellite system that will enhance navigation and positioning performance compared with the existing GPS system. The combination of GPS and Galileo will enable location based services by providing better positional data than with GPS alone.
SiGe’s SE4120 allows consumer device manufacturers to design Galileo ready systems, even whilst standards are being finalised. The software based receiver architecture ensures that changes to the standards can be supported with software upgrades. The software defined architecture also minimises board area, power consumption, and cost.
[via newelectronics.co.uk]