Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) logo.
Credit: Reuters FilePhoto
Krishnakumar R Bengaluru, DHNS
Bengaluru: Qualcomm Technologies on Wednesday announced that select chipset platforms in its upcoming portfolio will support the recently launched L1 signals of India’s indigenous navigation satellite system NavIC, developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro).
The move will help accelerate the adoption of NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) and enhance the geolocation capabilities and robustness of mobile, automotive and the Internet of Things (IoT) solutions in the region, with the backing of homegrown engineering talent, Qualcomm said in a statement.
Francesco Grilli, vice president – product management, Qualcomm Technologies, said the move extends the company’s work with Isro to further accelerate NavIC’s adoption. Grilli leads efforts to work with device manufacturers globally in developing smartphones with satellite communication capabilities.
NavIC is designed with a constellation of seven satellites and a network of ground stations. Its coverage area includes India and a region of up to 1,500 km beyond the country’s territorial boundaries. NavIC signals can provide position accuracy better than 20 metres and are interoperable with other global navigation system signals including GPS, Galileo, BeiDou, and GLONASS.
Savi Soin, President, Qualcomm India, said enabling NavIC on the company’s Snapdragon mobile platforms will drive innovative use cases for Indian consumers across multiple segments including smartphones, IoT and automotive.
Manish Saxena, director, Satellite Navigation Programme Office, Isro Headquarters, said the space agency aims to bring the benefits of NavIC to all users. “The L1 signals will be a critical next step by enabling better performance of location-based services in the consumer segment,” he said.
Additional support for the L1 signals will be available in Qualcomm’s select chipset platforms starting in the second half of 2024, and commercial devices supporting them are expected to be available during the first half of 2025.