June 7, 2007 — InvenSense, Inc., provider of integrated motion sensing solutions for mobile applications, has released its IDG-1004, which the company says is “the world’s smallest and lowest cost dual-axis gyroscope” for the GPS portable navigation device (PND) market.
The IDG-1004 enables dead reckoning (DR) to enable navigation where GPS cannot operate. In addition, it promises better map matching capability by measuring the direction of the vehicle with one axis, while providing better distance accuracy by measuring slope as the vehicle travels up and down hills or in rough terrain using the second axis.
The second axis of the gyroscope also reportedly allows drivers easier installation by compensating for the angle at which the PND may be installed. (Arbitrary mounting with a single axis gyroscope frequently results in lower accuracy.) Furthermore, the IDG-1004’s X-axis and Y-axis sensing ability enables in-plane mounting on the main PND circuit board. Competing single-axis gyroscopes typically require a daughter board to be mounted perpendicular to the main PND circuit board since they measure only the Z-axis plane.
“Sales of portable navigation devices are expected to top 25 million units worldwide in 2007,” said Richard Robinson, principal analyst, automotive electronics, with the market-research firm iSuppli Corp., El Segundo, Calif. “Enhancing location and direction accuracy to the levels of more expensive in-vehicle systems will be one of the next main goals of PND makers.”