Eos’ Arrow GNSS Receivers Enable Accurate and Affordable Data Collection
Eos Positioning Systems (Eos) designs and manufactures high-accuracy Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers for mobile data collection on any device.
Headquartered in Montréal, Eos has been an Esri Silver Partner since 2014 and ensures its receivers support the ArcGIS platform. The Eos Arrow receivers provide submetre and centimetre accuracy directly to Esri mobile apps, including Collector and Survey123 for ArcGIS. Eos Chief Technology Officer Jean-Yves Lauture elaborates more on this partnership and the company’s vision and unique positioning in the GNSS industry.
ANN: Can you briefly explain the vision that guided the development of Eos GNSS receivers?
JYL: In 2014, the same team of GNSS thought leaders who pioneered Bluetooth GPS receivers almost two decades ago, came together to create Eos. Their vision was simple: to provide affordable high-accuracy GNSS receivers that were easy to use for GIS customers. They wanted to emphasize three things—simplicity of use, so any GIS user could collect high-accuracy data; device agnosticism, so crews could work on any iOS, Android or Windows smart device; and positive customer experience, so the product and related support resources evolved to meet customer needs and protect their long-term investment. Since its foundation, Eos has emerged as the market leader in high-accuracy GNSS data collection.
ANN: What differentiates Arrow from other GNSS solutions in the marketplace?
JYL: The Arrow is a flexible and future-proof receiver that can work with any iOS, Android or Windows smartphone or tablet. It also provides GIS users with higher-accuracy location and greater reliability than other receivers, even in the toughest environments. Designed for simplicity and ease of use, the Arrow is also rugged, lightweight, waterproof and dustproof; and it offers all-day battery life for maximized productivity. It provides a unique balance of accuracy, affordability, flexibility and ease of use.
ANN: How has Eos improved its product line to keep up with evolving technology?
JYL: We’re constantly improving our product line to ensure our company offers the latest technology. This includes supporting all new frequencies (e.g. L5) and new GNSS constellations (e.g. Galileo, BeiDou) in addition to existing ones (such as L1, L2, GPS and GLONASS). This ensures our customers have a product that they can use for years.
In addition, we offer base stations. When satellite corrections and private RTK networks are not readily available, our customers can install their own Arrow base stations for real-time RTK cm corrections. This real-time asset positioning aligns with Collector and Survey123 workflows.
ANN: The Arrow 100 is known to work where other receivers can't. What is unique about the Arrow 100?
JYL: The Arrow 100 has superior tracking capability under dense canopy. It’s able to maintain lock with the Wide-Area Augmentation System (WAAS) in this difficult condition, which provides the value of having a differential GNSS (DGNSS) position in the toughest environments. DGNSS is a position from GPS that has been differentially corrected, which adds the value of higher accuracy without requiring post-processing. This is the difference between having submetre position accuracy versus 5-10m accuracy.
ANN: How can public organizations, such as municipalities, provincial and federal agencies, leverage Arrow to achieve their asset management goals?
JYL: The Arrow is used for asset management in utilities, government, forestry, pipeline and other sectors. High-accuracy asset data creates a high-confidence system of record. This, in turn, creates improvements and efficiencies in workflows related to regulatory compliance, work order management, as-builts, enterprise information sharing and more. Eos customers are regularly realizing ROI from their asset management projects.
ANN: Where is Eos’ future headed?
JYL: Eos’ mission is to listen to its customers and ensure it provides all features required today, as well as tomorrow. When our company proposed 1cm accuracy years ago, the market was not ready. Now, customers are demanding it. We constantly learn from customers about their upcoming needs through events, customer support inquiries and business partnerships. We’re always innovating to provide the newest products and app features in our mission to anticipate the market’s GNSS needs.
ANN: What are your recommendations to Eos customers about using ArcGIS technology to enable asset management?
JYL: Esri’s ArcGIS platform has revolutionized field data collection. ArcGIS Online and its related apps, including Collector and Survey123, make it possible for anyone to begin collecting critical asset information on any device. This is a game-changer for asset management and for all Canadian organizations responsible for preserving and managing the infrastructure all of us rely on.
This interview has been condensed and edited.
Partner Quick Facts
Company: Eos Positioning Systems, Inc.
Head Office: Montréal, QC
Products: Arrow GNSS receivers
Focus Industries: Utilities, Government, Forestry, Agriculture, Archaeology, Transportation, Land Management
Mission: To provide GIS users with a simple, flexible and reliable solution for high-accuracy field mapping.
This article originally appeared in the Spring 2018 issue of ArcNorth News.