To date, Taiwan has relied on European countries, such as France and Germany, for such devices.
According to Yu Xian-zheng, deputy director of the Hsinchu-based National Space Organization (NSO), space-based GPS receivers are a critical component of a satellite as they are the only means of communication with ground control during space missions.
Traditional receivers have slow response times and take eight minutes to boot up, Yu said, adding that the receiver developed by Taiwan is the fastest in the world, taking only 90 seconds to boot up.
The device also weighs only 800 grams, much lighter than its counterparts in Europe at 2-3 kilograms. It costs about US$200,000 to manufacture, a price only one-third of the European ones, Yu said.
The NSO official said space-based GPS receivers can conduct various missions such as weather forecasts and climate analysis.
He said the Taiwan-developed device will be utilized in the country’s FORMOSAT-7 program, with the satellite set for launch by 2018.
As Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea are developing their own space-based GPS receivers, the NSO said it will continue efforts to make its device lighter, smaller and more energy-efficient.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com