Trimble Mapping and GIS: Yuma 2 – Rugged Tablet computer

Posted by FPI MGIS Support on May 18, 2013
Posted in: Uncategorized, Trimble News. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Trimble has recently released their Yuma 2, ruggedized tablet, into their Mapping and GIS portfolio.

Yuma 2

The Yuma 2 is a fully-functional field computer featuring the Microsoft® Windows 7 Professional operating system, with a 1.6 Ghz Intel Atom dual-core processor, 4 GB of DDR3 DRAM, a 64 GB solid state drive (SSD) and a dual battery with eight hours of typical run-time. Optional features include a 128 GB SSD, 3.75G cellular data connectivity and an Extended Battery Set that provides up to 16 hours of operation.

Featuring a new display technology for clear readability even in direct sunlight, the Yuma 2 can be used by workers in the brightest outdoor conditions.

As with other Trimble rugged mobile computers, the Yuma 2 is fully ruggedized and meets stringent MIL-STD-810G military standards for drops, vibration and humidity and is rated IP65 for protection against dust and water.

Only an inch and a half deep, the Yuma 2 offers a 7 inch capacitive multi-touch screen in a easy-to-hold form factor that measures 6.3 inches x 9.6 inches, and weighs only 2.6 pounds.

The 3.75G dual-mode cellular data connectivity enables productivity solutions anywhere GSM or CDMA cellular networks are available.

An optional Extended Battery Set provides up to 16 hours of operation.

See the Yuma 2 data sheet for complete details.

Yuma 2 Overview

Define Ruggedized?

 

Do you have high accuracy GIS needs?

You can pair the Trimble Yuma 2 Tablet with Trimble’s high accuracy Pro 6 Receivers!

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With the flexibility to do it all, Trimble® Pro series receivers deliver unparalleled freedom of choice in professional GIS data collection. As the next generation of the Trimble GPS Pathfinder® family, the Trimble Pro series lets you configure a solution to match a wide range of work situations:

  • Handheld or tablet data collector
  • Real-time or postprocessed workflows
  • Connectivity via Bluetooth®, serial, or USB to external devices
  • In a backpack, on a pole, or mounted on a vehicle

With the Trimble Pro series receiver collect data your way, while maintaining the high-accuracy and position availability you need to stay productive.

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See the Pro 6 data sheet for complete details.

Please contact your local Frontier Precision location to find out more information today!

Frontier Precision and Laser Technology: Lunch and Learn Sessions – Minnesota

Posted by FPI MGIS Support on May 15, 2013
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Frontier Precision and Laser Technology are pleased to invite you to our Minnesota Lunch and Learn Sessions. These will be a hands on learning experience with Laser Technologies newest and latest equipment for Forestry, GIS and Traffic Safety applications.

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Solar activity is high: Three X-Class Solar Flares

Posted by FPI MGIS Support on May 15, 2013
Posted in: Technical Tips. Tagged: , , , .

We received notification from Spaceweather.com of high solar flare activity:

"Solar activity is high.  During a 24 hour period straddling May 13th and 14th, the sun unleashed three X-class solar flares.  These are the strongest flares of the year so far, and they signal a significant increase in solar activity.  The source of the flares, a large sunspot on the sun's eastern limb, appears poised to erupt again as it turns toward Earth."

As GNSS users, it is import to know what is happening with solar activity, especially now as we are entering a solar maximum. Over the past few days the solar activity has picked up, with three X-Class solar flares within the last 24 hours. These are the strongest flares of the year so far, and they signal significant increase in solar activity. The source of the flares, a large sunspot on the sun’s eastern limb, appears poised to erupt again as it turns toward earth.

You may be asking, what is an X-Class solar flare, and how will it affect me and my GNSS? Here is a little background  from Accuweather that will hopefully answer those questions.

Solar flares are giant explosions on the Sun that send energy, light and high speed particles into space. These flares are often associated with coronal mass ejections (CMEs). The number of solar flares increases approximately every 11 years, and the Sun is currently moving towards another solar maximum, likely in 2013. That means more flares will be coming, some small and some big enough to send their radiation all the way to Earth.

The biggest flares are known as “X-class flares” based on a classification system that divides solar flares according to their strength. The smallest ones are A-class (near background levels), followed by B, C, M and X. Similar to the Richter scale for earthquakes, each letter represents a 10-fold increase in energy output. So an X is 10 times an M and 100 times a C. Within each letter class there is a finer scale from 1 to 9.

Although X is the last letter, there are flares more than 10 times the power of an X1, so X-class flares can go higher than 9. The most powerful flare measured with modern methods was in 2003, during the last solar maximum, and it was so powerful that it overloaded the sensors measuring it. The sensors cut out at X28.

If they’re directed at Earth, such flares and associated CMEs can create long lasting radiation storms that can harm satellites, communications systems and even ground-based technologies and power grids. X-class flares on Dec. 5 and 6, 2006, for example, triggered a CME that interfered with GPS signals being sent to ground-based receivers.

For more information, or to sign up for solar activity alerts, go to www.spaceweather.com

Please plan to join Frontier Precision, Laser Technology, and GeoSpatial Experts for the webinar: April 10, 2013 at 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM MDT

Posted by FPI MGIS Support on April 6, 2013
Posted in: Uncategorized.

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“Field Data Collection With Smartphone’s, Tablets and Lasers”

GeoJot+TruPulse

You’ll see how the integrated TruPulse® mapping laser / GeoJot+ system can work seamlessly with your organization’s Android Smartphone’s and tablets to collect photos, attribute data, and distance measurements — and then automatically send your data via the cloud to GeoJot+ running on a processing PC at the office.

We’ll also demonstrate how to use GeoJot+ to process your field data and to map the results in ArcGIS or Google Earth, or to import the data into a back end database, or to create reports and watermarked photos.

The demonstration of the GeoJot+ / TruPulse system includes:

  • Remote capture of distance, height, or elevation data with a TruPulse mapping laser and smart phone
  • Collection of geo-located photo and up to 44 attributes that describe the subject of the photo
  • Capturing barcodes as attribute values
  • Using the cloud to transfer photos and data to the office
  • Automatic generation of shapefiles, geodatabases, Google Earth maps, and professional reports, including offset positions.
  • Use of the Administrator’s Dashboard to transfer GeoJot+ App licenses among mobile team members

Join us for the joint webinar on Wednesday, April 10th at 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM MDT.

Click here to Register

Updated Trimble Positions Software Suite – April 2013

Posted by FPI MGIS Support on April 5, 2013
Posted in: Software / Firmware Update, Trimble News, Trimble Positions. Tagged: , , , , , .

Updated Trimble Positions Software Suite:

Both the Trimble Positions suite and Toolkit have been updated to include the following enhancements and updates:

  • Work with offsets and rangefinders to capture data in situations where previously it would be impractical or unsafe to do so:
    • Distance-bearing offset functionality for points and vertices.
    • Line offset functionality for polyline and polygon features.
    • Support for the Trimble LaserAce™ 1000 and LTI TruPulse 360B laser rangefinders.
  • The Trimble Positions Desktop add-in can now be used in organizations deploying Citrix or roaming profiles.
  • More customers can access the benefits of Trimble Positions software-it is now available in German, French, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazilian), and Japanese.
  • Trimble Positions software suite has been added to the Mapping & GIS Educator program, so educational institutions can have access to the software at special educator pricing.
  • Reference the release notes for full details of all updates at this release.

Downloads:

Trimble Positions Downloads

Latest versions (Release Notes):
Trimble Positions Desktop add-in v10.1.0.2 – Release Notes(254 KB)

Trimble Positions Mobile extension v10.1.1.1 – Release Notes(221 KB)

Trimble Positions Mobile Project Center extension v10.1.1.1 – Release Notes(170 KB)

Trimble Positions ArcPad extension v10.0.0.2 – Release Notes(188 KB)

 

From the Trimble Positions Software Suite Development Team Blog:

Trimble Positions Desktop add-in
  • Built-in Mobile Cache creation and synchronization - Integrated support for creating and synchronizing the Mobile Cache without needing to use the Esri Mobile toolbox. This streamlines the "desktop" workflow within the Trimble Positions solution.  You'll note that the 'Check for New Sessions' button has been relabeled 'Handle Sessions' and now has a context menu.  Also, there is a new entry in the context menu that opens when you click 'Create...' on the Projects screen.  We tried to keep the workflow consistent with other project types...by starting in the Projects screen.
  • Map extent used to sort base stations when creating a profile - Allows you to sort the base station list by proximity to the current map extent when creating a Processing Profile.  This will be the default 'Show Base Stations Closest to' behavior when you open the 'Select Base Station' form. You'll also note some improvements around how we display the currently selected base station when you want to edit an existing profile.
  • Citrix and roaming profiles support - Supports the concepts of roaming profiles and per-user configurations on the desktop. This is useful in larger enterprise organizations where software applications and user configurations are centrally managed.  Per-machine configurations are also still supported.  You'll see this in the re-designed Configuration tool but rest assured that your existing configuration will work just fine (it's per-machine).  You'll also note that the log files are now stored in the roaming folder within your user profile's application data folder.
  • Base station management support - Supports base station management, including updating the CBS List from the Trimble FTP server, loading of user-defined base stations defined and used in GPS Pathfinder® Office and Trimble GPS Analyst™ extension, and saving of user-defined base stations defined in Trimble Positions Desktop add-in. These utilities are available within the Configuration tool.
  • Issues Addressed - There is a good list in the Release Notes and we believe we've addressed the big ones: connections to the desktop database on Windows XP should now be reliable, post-processing with DAT files no longer requires a NAV file, and floating Desktop add-in licenses are now released properly under additional scenarios.
  • Simple and complex offset support - Supports feature geometry data collection using simple and complex offsets. This includes support for simple left-/right- offsets along a path or perimeter and complex distance-bearing offsets for point features or polyline and polygon vertices.  You'll see new menu items in the data collection screen.  Workflow might be a little tricky here, but only until you get the hang of it: start point collection before starting a point offset; start a line offset before collecting a stream (or vertex) for a polyline/polygon.
  • Laser rangefinder support - Supports the Trimble LaserAce 1000 and LTi 360B laser rangefinders.  You'll see a new section in the GNSS settings screen to select the rangefinder model and port.  Once you have a laser rangefinder connected, pressing the button on it will automatically populate the fields in the point (and line!) offset forms if you have them open.
Trimble Positions Mobile extension
  • Simple and complex offset support - Supports feature geometry data collection using simple and complex offsets. This includes support for simple left-/right- offsets along a path or perimeter and complex distance-bearing offsets for point features or polyline and polygon vertices.  You’ll see new menu items in the data collection screen.  Workflow might be a little tricky here, but only until you get the hang of it: start point collection before starting a point offset; start a line offset before collecting a stream (or vertex) for a polyline/polygon.
  • Laser rangefinder support – Supports the Trimble LaserAce 1000 and LTi 360B laser rangefinders.  You’ll see a new section in the GNSS settings screen to select the rangefinder model and port.  Once you have a laser rangefinder connected, pressing the button on it will automatically populate the fields in the point (and line!) offset forms if you have them open.
  • Simple line extension - Allows a polyline feature from the GIS to be extended either from the start or end point.
A few quick notes on installation…
  • Trimble Positions Desktop add-in : uninstall the old version first, then install the new version; the existing desktop database configuration (and hence all of your projects, processing profiles, etc.) should remain intact.
  • Trimble Positions Mobile extension & Trimble Positions Mobile Project Center extension : uninstall the old Trimble Positions extension version (if doing it manually, you need to include the Trimble GNSSServer component on the handheld as well), uninstall the old Esri ArcGIS for Windows Mobile version, install the new Esri version, then install the new Trimble Positions extension version; your existing mobile projects, and their Trimble Positions settings, should work just fine.
  • Trimble Positions ArcPad extension : uninstall the old version first, then install the new version.

More information can be found on: The Trimble Positions Software Suite Development Team Blog