While navigation is obviously something that many drivers depend on, one company decided to create a solution to enhance the navigation experience. That solution is Broadcom Limited’s new BCM47755, which is a single-chip, dual-frequency global-navigation satellite-system (GNSS) receiver. According to Broadcom, the BCM47755 is the first mass-market, dual- frequency GNSS receiver device. It is intended for smartphones, tablets, and wearables. The BCM47755 could also find its way into other Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
Traditional GNSS receivers have only used the L1 signal. However, the BCM47755 uses both L1 and L5 signals. As Manuel del Castillo, associate director, GNSS product marketing at Broadcom, explains, “With the BCM47755, both L1 and L5 signals from the same satellite are used. This is needed because L1 is a more basic signal, while L5 is more advanced. With L1, positioning can be computed with fewer resources and in less time. The approach is to start with L1 for basic acquisition and then switch to L5. Once we have L5, we don’t need L1. Thus, we believe that the BCM47755 allows for the best of both worlds.”