The u-blox high-precision RTK GNSS module is built into the newly released UAV navigation device from Hsing Electronics

     U-blox, a global leader in wireless and positioning modules and chips, announced that the company's NEO-M8P high-precision RTK GNSS module has been adopted by HEX Taiwan for its new "Here+" UAV navigation unit. Hsing Electronics is the world's leading open source hardware manufacturer, committed to producing the world's best open source UAV flight control devices.

     The Here+ RTK GNSS installation is the result of a collaboration between Herxing Electronics and Ardupilot, an open source drone technology community team. It consists of a circular on-board navigation module (rover) designed for mounting on UAVs and utilizes the 8-pin CLIK-Mate™ connector provided with the device (for Pixhawk2 flight control devices) or optionally a 4-pin + 6-pin DF13 connector (for Pixhawk1 flight control devices). Connect to flight controller. The base station uses a more sophisticated GNSS receiver and external antenna to complete the set of equipment. Built into Here+ is the u‑blox NEO‑M8P module family. It is the smallest, lightest, and most power-efficient high-precision GNSS real-time Dynamic positioning (RTK) module on the market, bringing centimeter-level positioning accuracy to the mass market. In addition, it offers multiple versions of base station and rover options, creating a complete and versatile solution.

     According to a research report by Goldman Sachs Group, with the rise of commercial drone demand, the drone market will rapidly grow to a size of $100 billion by 2020. At the same time, the need to provide accurate positioning and navigation at an affordable cost will increase. Therefore, HSING Electronics aims to bring open source drone technology to the larger community and provide affordable peripherals for drone operators. Thanks to the introduction of Here+, these needs can now be met, and the navigation suite is suitable for a wide variety of applications such as agricultural plant protection drones, power line patrol, precision agriculture, logistics, or 3D mapping.

     Gene Wu, general manager of HEX Electronics, said: "Here+ is the result of our collaboration with Ardupilot and will help take the open source drone industry to the next level. We chose u-blox because its GNSS technology is one of the best solutions on the market, providing an affordable RTK GPS/GNSS solution for drone navigation with superior performance. We look forward to continuing our future partnership, first and foremost, with the launch of Here+ 2 later this year."

     "NEO-M8P brings high-precision positioning technology to the mass market, and we are pleased to see u-blox's technology being widely used in industries such as open source drones. Prior to NEO-M8P, high-precision positioning technology was rarely used in the design of mass-market drones," said Liu Yong-hsien, commercial Development Manager, u-blox Taiwan.