Artist rendition of a Galileo satellite in orbit. Photo: ESA

[Via Satellite 12-03-2014] Broadcom has designed a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) location hub for smartphones that supports Europe’s Galileo constellation. With the inclusion of Galileo, this brings the number of GNSS constellations supported by the Broadcom BCM4774 to five: Galileo, the United States’ Global Positioning System (GPS), Russia’s Glonass, Japan’s Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), and China’s BeiDou satellite system. The device also supports Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) enhancements.

Broadcom is currently sampling the location hub with customers. The BCM4774 reduces battery drain by processing the data directly on the device. According to Broadcom, the advanced hardware design and increased memory can reduce power consumption by up to 95 percent over traditional architectures in certain modes.