Fastrax Announces New uPatch OEM GPS Receiver Modules with Integrated Antenna

location based services

Helsinki, Finland - May 22, 2006 - Fastrax Ltd., a leading provider of open and portable OEM GPS Software Development Kit environments and programmable OEM GPS receivers, today announced the latest additions to its uPatch family of ultra-compact receiver modules with an integrated high-performance patch antenna.

Based on the Sony CXD2951 chipset, all uPatch receiver modules offer very high navigation performance in a compact, cost-effective design. The receivers are ideally suited for navigation and recreational devices as well as GPS Mouse type applications in which high performance and low cost are key issues.

uPatch 100-S: High performance with an ultra-small footprint The RoHS-compliant uPatch100-S expands the Fastrax line of GPS receivers based on Sony GPS chipsets. The uPatch100-S is an ultra-small OEM GPS receiver with a built-in antenna. With a form factor of only 22 x 22 x 8 mm, it is a compact and versatile receiver for NMEA-only applications. Typical Hot Start Time to First Fix (TTFF) is 3 seconds, while state-of-the-art signal acquisition and tracking circuitry enables reliable navigation with weak signals and in difficult environments.

uPatch 101: Design flexibility through advanced power management The RoHS-compliant uPatch 101 is a new addition to the uPatch product family. The compact receiver offers all the flexibility and high performance of other Fastrax OEM GPS modules, while providing additional options for product design through an integrated battery backup capacitor for low power modes.

uPatch 102: The ideal upgrade path for uPatch 100 customers The new uPatch102 is a RoHS-compliant upgrade to the previous-generation uPatch100 receiver module. The receiver features two additional I/O pins for baud rate selection, providing an interface that is otherwise identical to the uPatch100. This offers manufacturers the ideal way of upgrading their uPatch100-based designs for state-of-the art navigation performance while keeping hardware redesign time and costs to a minimum.

"We were looking for a small and cost-effective integrated GPS product that has outstanding ground track performance. The uPatch100-S meets our demanding requirements perfectly. Fastrax Engineering Services helped us to fine tune GPS functionality in our application and thus shorten the time to market significantly. These are critical success factors in today's competitive market," said Alessandro De Dominicis, Technical Director at Navionics, a Fastrax customer.

"We have received very positive feedback from pilot customers on the new uPatch products. The competitive price point together with excellent performance and compact size is what our customers have been waiting for," said Matti Räty, President and CEO of Fastrax.

All Fastrax uPatch receiver modules are very easy to use. The interface pins carry all necessary signals for typical NMEA-only applications. The user needs only to connect the main and backup power supplies to make the receiver operational.

For the uPatch 102 and uPatch100-S receivers, low-power backup battery mode is achieved simply by removing the main power supply at any time. The receiver will resume normal operation once the main power supply is reconnected. The uPatch 101 operates with power from the internal battery backup capacitor for up to six hours while main power is removed.

For further product details and technical specifications on Fastrax uPatch receiver modules, please visit www.fastrax.fi.

About Fastrax Ltd
Fastrax provides industry-leading receivers and software solutions for optimal utilization of GPS (Global Positioning System) and other GNSS location services (Global Navigation Satellite Systems). Fastrax transforms GPS technologies into highly scalable iTrax and iSuite solutions with open interfaces, combined to ultra low power consumption and miniature hardware design. With industry-leading performance, Fastrax GPS receivers navigate continuously even in extreme conditions. Receivers are ideally suited to both industrial location applications and high-volume consumer products such as cell phones and sports accessories. Fastrax Engineering Services provide expert services in application design. Headquartered in Finland and founded in 1999, the company is privately owned and backed by leading venture capital investors CapMan, Eqvitec, Startupfactory and Innocap, with a strategic investment by Suunto Corporation, a subsidiary of Amer Sports, a leading global supplier of sporting goods equipment. More information: www.fastrax.fi.

Global Positioning System (GPS) is a worldwide satellite navigation infrastructure funded and controlled by the U.S. Department of Defense, originally developed for U.S. military purposes. GPS provides satellite signals that enable GPS receivers to calculate their exact position and velocity. The GPS infrastructure has three segments. The space segment consists of 24 satellites that orbit the earth every 12 hours. The control segment consists of tracking stations located around the world, with the master control station located at Falcon Air Force Base in Colorado. The user segment consists of GPS receivers and users utilizing the information provided by the system. GPS is widely used in applications such as marine navigation.