Caterpillar is implementing new technology on several of its control and guidance products to provide customer access to a broader range of GPS positioning frequencies. Caterpillar is providing this technology to take advantage of recent enhancements to the US NAVSTAR GPS system, as well as Russia”s renewed commitment and improvements to their GLONASS satellite constellation. This broader range of positioning frequencies will allow Caterpillar products, such as AccuGradeTM, CAES and Aquila Drill and Dragline Systems, to use the US NAVSTAR GPS system L5 and L2C frequencies as well as the Russian GLONASS G1 and G2 signals. Access to both satellite constellations further demonstrates Caterpillar”s commitment to provide users with the greatest uptime and availability.
Customers located in the northernmost and southernmost regions of the world, such as northern Canada, Australia, and southern Africa, will be most affected by this new release and will experience dramatic productivity improvements. In addition, those working in areas where line of sight to the sky is difficult, such as in dense tree-lined areas, urban sites encircled by tall buildings, and deep pit mining sites, will witness improved uptime and capabilities.
Customers worldwide will see increased signal strength, better signal acquisition and retention, improved initialization time, and overall, more robust performance in difficult environments.
“Caterpillar, the industry”s first provider of factory-integrated machine control solutions, continues to be the forerunner in providing innovative machinery and hardware to meet our customers” needs. This second generation of machine control and guidance technology products continues to build on that world-class reputation,” said Tim Cunningham, General Manager of the Caterpillar Information Products and Solutions Division.
The new technology will be available on Caterpillar products by the end of 2006. For more information on Cat machine control and guidance products, contact your local Caterpillar dealers or go to www.cat.com.
