AT&T, GO, PenStuff, and Trimble Turn Personal Communicators into “Personal Navigators”
NEW YORK — June 29, 1993 — AT&T, GO, PenStuff and Trimble Navigation Tuesday made it easy for software developers to turn personal communicators into "personal navigators."
Now applications can be built so users will be able to find their location on maps, navigate point to point, find restaurants, shopping centers, or businesses "on the go," and even get current traffic and weather information.
The four partner companies have announced the PenPoint(R) Global Positioning System (GPS) application programming interface (API) and will demonstrate applications which conform to the API on the AT&T EO 440 Personal Communicator at the PC Expo industry trade show, booth #957.
The API is an open standard that defines classes, messages and data structures. GPS hardware manufacturers and third-party software developers can then design GPS applications for PenPoint, the premier operating system for communications and mobile computing from GO. The GPS API will be published on GO's Bulletin Board on CompuServe later this summer.
PenStuff and Trimble Navigation will offer a PenPoint software development kit (SDK) based on the API in third quarter. The SDK will let software developers quickly integrate GPS into their PenPoint applications. It will include an installable service and sample source code developed by PenStuff, and use a Trimble Navigation Mobile GPS PCMCIA Sensor. A software-only version of the SDK will be available directly from PenStuff.
"We're pleased to facilitate the development and rollout of new communications standards," said AT&T Microelectronics' Diana Bury, ISV Marketing Manager, Personal Communications Systems. "Providing integrated solutions is a key piece of AT&T's ISV strategy for enabling new and different applications on the personal communicator platform based on AT&T's Hobbit(TM) microprocessor and GO's PenPoint. The availability of personal navigation solutions will allow seamless integration of map data with other useful information to help users on the move."
By combining GPS technology with personal communicators, users can pinpoint their location in terms of latitude, longitude and altitude. Field workers can use GPS to locate their position on a digital map, navigate to a desired location, and collect positional information for use with desktop Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications.
"Many of the players in the emerging mobile computing and communications market recognize the natural synergy that exists between personal communicators and GPS technology," said Bill Dussell of Trimble Navigation. "Integrating GPS is simple in concept, yet can be difficult for third-party developers to implement in practice. By defining this standard API, we've taken a giant step towards removing the complexities of using GPS in PenPoint applications. Removing these barriers will be good for both the commercial GPS industry and the personal communicator community."
The third-party API is the first to be adopted by GO Corporation. "Thanks to the combined efforts of AT&T, PenStuff and Trimble Navigation, PenPoint developers will be able to build support for GPS systems into their applications," said Cary Masatsugu, Director, Systems Software Product Marketing at GO. "We look forward to the exciting new mobile solutions that will be fostered by this new standard."
"PenStuff is committed to supplying leading edge pen- based software for field data collection. We fully support the definition and publication of new API standards and will contribute to that effort whenever possible," said George Seff, President of PenStuff,Inc.
"This API expands the usefulness of the AT&T EO Personal Communicator to solve a whole new class of problems for customers," said Alain Rossmann, President and CEO of EO, Inc, creators of the first personal communicator.
AT&T Microelectronics, Personal Communications Systems, located in Santa Clara, Calif., designs, manufactures and markets the Hobbit family of processors for personal communicator applications. GO Corporation, a privately held company in Foster City, CA, develops, markets and supports PenPoint, its pen-based operating system for mobile applications.
PenStuff, Inc., a privately held company in Rochester, N.Y., is a developer of field data collection applications for mobile computing. Trimble Navigation Ltd. (NASDAQ:TRMB) is a world leader in the emerging commercial market for satellite-based navigation and positioning products using the U.S. Government-funded Global Positioning System (GPS). The company designs, manufactures and markets electronic instruments and systems for determining precise geographic location. PenPoint is a trademark of GO Corporation. Hobbit is a trademark of AT&T. All other products or brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
CONTACT:
AT&T Microelectronics
Terri Hodges, 408/980-3797
or
GO Corporation
Renee Risch, 415/358-2075
or
PenStuff Inc.
Bill Rigney, 716/461-3182
or
Trimble Navigation
Bill Dussell, 408/481-8915