SUNNYVALE, Calif.-Trimble announced that it will supply more than 500 Trimble NetR9 GNSS reference station receivers to the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI), part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), to modernize its nationwide GeoNet GNSS-based network. The receivers were purchased through the Nikon-Trimble joint venture in Japan.

GeoNet provides GNSS data for a variety of applications including surveying, construction, mapping and GIS, weather forecasting and many others. In addition, the network is used to monitor the earth’s crustal movements to aid in the research of seismic activity in Japan.

“Trimble, in cooperation with Hitachi Zosen Information Systems (HZS) of Japan, has supplied more than 2,700 GPS/GNSS reference stations to GSI since 1992,” said Ulrich Vollath, general manager of Trimble’s Infrastructure Division. “GPS data from the NetR9 GNSS reference stations will support the existing monitoring system, which uses Bernese processing software in a quasi real-time mode, and also provides the real-time raw data from a subset of GeoNet stations to produce the network corrected Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) data service for the entire country. As part of the network capabilities, surveyors can access accurate control points and data through an online bulletin board service.”

The Trimble NetR9 GNSS is a Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) receiver that can support the most demanding infrastructure, precise scientific and network applications. With robust GNSS constellation tracking, the NetR9 is capable of tracking signals from GPS, GLONASS, Galileo GIOVE-A and -B, Compass and QZSS constellations. With 440 channels, the NetR9 has the capacity to accommodate additional signals as they become available.