At present, intelligent devices such as Internet of Vehicles, low-altitude economy, intelligent driving and robots are booming, and the accuracy of all these operations is highly dependent on the development of high-precision positioning technology.
With the integration of the physical world and the digital world, the concept of spatiotemporal intelligence has been born. Accurately obtaining and presenting the location information of any object in space has become an important demand for the development of the times.
Beidou, as the key to achieving this, is driving satellite positioning towards high precision, which has become an inevitable trend.
Satellite positioning technology has made great progress, and the infrastructure of spatiotemporal information has been gradually improved.
In this grand industrial pattern, my country's high-precision positioning field relies on the Beidou satellite navigation system to deploy mainstream technical paths such as RTK real-time dynamic differential positioning, PPP precise single-point positioning, N-RTK network RTK, and innovative PPP-RTK that integrates PPP and RTK, achieving high-precision positioning in outdoor environments such as intelligent transportation, intelligent connected vehicles, precision agriculture, and environmental monitoring.
Under this opportunity, the application and industrialization of navigation systems led by Beidou have ushered in unprecedented development opportunities. In 2024, the scale of my country's satellite navigation industry will exceed 400 billion yuan, of which the scale of Beidou's core industry will exceed 140 billion yuan. Basic products including chips, modules, antennas, etc. have achieved a mass production scale of 100 million yuan.
It is expected that by the end of the "14th Five-Year Plan", that is, in 2025, the overall output value of the satellite navigation and location service industry will exceed the trillion mark.
Fusion technology breakthroughs illuminate the light of application
As an important part of the satellite navigation and location service industry, high-precision positioning has also shown strong growth momentum and market vitality. It is expected that by the end of 2028, the market size is expected to grow to 126.34 billion yuan at a compound annual growth rate of 35%.
In most cases, satellite signals can usually provide seamless global coverage. However, in fragmented IoT scenarios, satellite signals face challenges such as orbital resources, multipath interference, equipment power consumption limitations, and data transmission efficiency, making them difficult to obtain.
In this context, the integration and development of Beidou with new generation information technologies such as 5G and the Internet of Things has enabled the indoor and outdoor integration of high-precision positioning technology to be deeply penetrated and widely used in various fields.
In 2024, breakthroughs in technologies such as Bluetooth, UWB, and 5G have opened up a new path for high-precision positioning.
Bluetooth 6.0
After the release of Bluetooth 6.0, its Bluetooth CS positioning mode has achieved a major leap in positioning accuracy to 0.5 meters through phase ranging (PBR) and round-trip time (RTT). According to the "Bluetooth Market Trend Report 2024" released by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), the global shipments of Bluetooth location service devices reached 262 million units in 2023. It is expected that by 2028, the annual compound growth rate of Bluetooth location service devices will be 22%, and the shipments will reach 563 million units.
This figure further demonstrates the strong momentum of Bluetooth technology in the high-precision positioning market. It has been widely used in smart warehousing, indoor positioning, asset management and other fields, and has strongly promoted the development of indoor precision positioning.
UWB car digital key
In 2024, UWB technology has also frequently appeared in the public eye. Digital car keys have become an important application scenario of UWB technology, and many car companies have landed UWB digital keys.
For example, the new Model 3 launched by Tesla in 2024 can automatically unlock and start the vehicle by simply carrying a mobile phone that supports UWB technology and approaching the car; BYD, as the first domestic car brand to launch UWB digital keys, has several models that support UWB technology, including Han EV Qianshancui Edition, Tang DM-p Ares Edition, Denza N7, and Yangwang U8; Audi, Huawei Wenjie, Geely Zeekr, Weilai Automobile, and Xiaopeng Automobile have all launched models that support UWB digital keys.
Previously, Tesla only provided UWB technical support for iOS users. Recently, there was news that Tesla will also provide UWB car digital keys for Android users in the future.
Qualcomm officially released a chip for mobile phones that integrates "Wi-Fi + Bluetooth + UWB" three-in-one in the first half of 2024, thanks to the development of UWB (ultra-wideband) technology. At present, Android phones based on this chip have been launched one after another, such as Google Pixel 6 and newer models, Samsung Fold 2 and newer models, and other Android flagship phones have supported UWB technology.
In 2023, the global UWB positioning tag market will reach 2.574 billion yuan, and the global UWB positioning tag market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 19.74%. UWB technology has the characteristics of high precision and strong anti-interference ability, and has gained a place in application scenarios such as indoor positioning, smart factories, and industrial automation.
5G+
The integration of 5G technology and high-precision positioning brings the advantages of higher speed, lower latency and larger number of connections to positioning services. Through the 5G network, the rapid transmission and processing of positioning data can be achieved, further improving the real-time and accuracy of positioning. In the field of intelligent transportation, the high-precision positioning technology of "5G+" can provide more accurate road conditions and positioning data for autonomous driving.
With the breakthrough of these high-precision positioning technologies, the compound growth rate of China's high-precision positioning market will be about 39% from 2022 to 2025, and the total market sales revenue in 2023 will reach 21.45 billion yuan. It is expected that the market size will grow to 82.6 billion yuan by 2025.
Industrial demand drives development
The demand for high-precision positioning in various industrial fields has shown an explosive growth trend, becoming the core driving force for the continuous innovation and widespread application of high-precision positioning technology.
In the field of intelligent transportation, high-precision positioning is the cornerstone of building an intelligent transportation system. Scenarios such as urban traffic congestion relief, intelligent bus scheduling optimization, and unmanned driving safe operation all require high-precision positioning to achieve accurate vehicle control and path planning. Among them, accurate navigation, efficient scheduling, and safe coordination in the Internet of Vehicles require positioning accuracy of meters or even centimeters.
In the logistics and warehousing industry, the efficient storage, rapid sorting, and precise distribution of goods rely on high-precision positioning technology to locate and track equipment, goods, and transport vehicles in the warehouse in real time, ensuring seamless connection and efficient operation of the logistics process and improving the overall efficiency of the supply chain.
In the industrial manufacturing link, from the positioning and installation of precision machined parts to the material distribution of automated production lines and robot collaborative operations in smart factories, high-precision positioning ensures the accuracy and stability of the production process, improves product quality and production efficiency, and helps the transformation and upgrading of Industry 4.0.
Agricultural production is moving towards the era of precision agriculture. Farmland soil fertility monitoring, crop growth status assessment, agricultural machinery automation operations and other links are inseparable from the combination of high-precision positioning and sensor technology to achieve accurate input and efficient utilization of agricultural resources, improve agricultural output quality and benefits, and promote sustainable agricultural development.
IOTE exhibition helps
At present, China's high-precision positioning market is showing a booming trend, and Qianxun Location, China Mobile, Huace Navigation, Zhonghaida and others occupy an important position in the market.
As an influential communication platform in the Internet of Things industry, the IOTE Internet of Things Exhibition provides an opportunity for high-precision positioning companies to connect with the cutting-edge technology of the industry.
During the exhibition, various high-end forums, technical seminars, special lectures and other activities such as "IOTE·2024 Shenzhen UWB Technology Innovation Application Seminar" and "IOTE 2024·Shenzhen Wi-Fi&Bluetooth&Xingshan Short-range IoT Technology Seminar" were rich and diverse. Enterprise representatives had in-depth exchanges with industry experts here to understand the latest technology trends, market dynamics and policy orientations, adjust corporate development strategies in a timely manner, and maintain market competitiveness.
In addition, customers can interact and cooperate with other related companies, and high-precision positioning companies can achieve resource sharing and complementary advantages, and jointly promote the deep integration and application of high-precision positioning technology in the field of the Internet of Things, accelerating the development of the industry.
The high-precision positioning companies participating in the last exhibition include: HID, Junmeng Intelligence, Jieyang Micro, Renwei Electronics, Air Cycle, Chixin Semiconductor, Lanco Xuntong, New Ruixin, Xinbang Technology, Hongyi Yunjia, Wulingtong, Cangqiong Technology, Qianxun Location, Sinan Navigation, Coreside, Xibotech, Network Technology, Jiuzhou Xingyi, Xiaoxiang Luojia, Chehulu Technology, Lance Electronics, Waze IoT, Shidian Technology, Core and Object, Mashi Information, Zhongdarong, Woxu Communication, Aurora Communication, Jianghaihui, Medisoko, Pinbo Technology, Yunliwuli, Lingyao Digital Intelligence, Tuxin Intelligent Control, Duyi IoT, Yikai Communication...
In short, IOTE Internet of Things Exhibition provides all-round support for the development of high-precision positioning companies with its strong platform advantages, rich industry resources and extensive influence, helping companies to move forward steadily in the fierce market competition and move towards a broader development space.
This paper is from Ulink Media, Shenzhen, China, the organizer of IOTE EXPO (IoT Expo in China)
