Orolia forms alliance with Satelles Inc. for STL signal technology

Orolia, the worldwide provider in Resilient Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) solutions, announces that it has formed a strategic alliance, including an equity investment, with Satelles Inc. to develop, market and sell PNT solutions based on Satelles’ Satellite Time and Location (STL) signal technology. STL is a unique space-based PNT technology that provides location and timing data independent from traditional GPS and other GNSS satellite signals. By using STL, Orolia’s proven Spectracom and McMurdo branded solutions will be less susceptible to vulnerabilities – spoofing, interference and jamming – associated with GPS/GNSS.

Many highly sensitive military, defense, government and commercial applications and operations including maritime/aviation, fleet/asset tracking management, search and rescue and data center management require accurate and reliable PNT data. Today, these applications rely on signals from GPS/GNSS satellites SBAS/GAGAN or Regional Satellite Navigation Systems such as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite system (IRNSS). There are instances, however where GPS/GNSS/IRNSS signal strength and security are not sufficient and prone to signal disruption. For these cases, STL can be used as a secure signal of opportunity to complement GPS/GNSS making the application more accurate and secure and less prone to interference attack.

Furthermore "Orolia has provided India with positioning and timing technologies for critical applications for many years. In the field of Search & Rescue, Orolia is a long-term partner with India since we equip the ground stations with the international satellite search and rescue system called "cospas-sarsat", the first generation was commissioned in 1989. These stations are used to detect the emission of distress signals and to calculate the position of beacons triggered in the event of danger to human life. Our aeronautical distress beacons are used by major Indian airlines. We are also being tested with the ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency) for our military distress beacons used by fighter pilots. In the field of ultra-precise time, we equip Indian satellite navigation satellites (IRNSS) with atomic clocks and have been supplying high-performance time and frequency references to the Indian defense industry for many years. Example for telecommunication or radar applications" explains Rohit Braggs, VP Networks & Sources of Orolia.

"The strategic partnership with Satelles, which allows us to expand our portfolio of highly robust positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) technologies, is an opportunity for Indian government players (armed forces, internal security, defense industry) and (E.g. marine, aviation, banking, IT, etc.) to have GPS / IRNSS signal curing technology interfered with by jamming and thus an additional level of reliability in accessing critical PNT data, their applications need."

“In today’s increasingly dynamic and mobile world, there is a growing need for precise and robust positioning, navigation and timing information especially in business-crucial, high-risk and life-saving operations,” said Dr. Jean-Yves Courtois, Orolia CEO. “By augmenting Orolia’s market-leading GPS/GNSS-based solutions with Satelles’ STL technology, we will have the industry’s first truly fail-safe, resilient PNT solution. This breakthrough offering will be ideal for mission critical applications in which the smallest of discrepancies in PNT data accuracy, availability and stability can result in a network outage, a system crash or a loss of life.”

Based on the Iridium satellite constellation, STL signals are up to 1000 times stronger than GPS/GNSS which helps to prevent jamming and allows easier signal reach into buildings and other hard-to-reach locations. STL’s additional cryptographic security also ensures the highest levels of performance, productivity and security.

“Satelles’ pioneering role in STL technology is a perfect fit with Orolia’s proven Resilient PNT strategy,” said Dr. Michael O’Connor, Satelles CEO. “We look forward to working together to introduce new products and solutions that will provide our customers with the utmost confidence that their positioning, navigation and timing data is accurate, secure and accessible.”