The development history of Tianbao

1978, Mr. Charlie Trimble from Hewlett-Packard and two other partners founded trimble Company in old Los Altos Theater in Silicon Valley. At that time, they didn't realize that they were creating a brand-new industry. However, history has proved that they did create a brand-new industry.

Since its birth, Trimble has been committed to developing innovative positioning and navigation products. Initially, this new company, which has just started, relies on Roland technology to develop its own products and is committed to developing its own products in the marine navigation market. LORAN is a company that provides ground navigation, positioning and timing systems in American coastal waters. At the same time, GPS, as a dual-use technology in Zhong Junmin, is emerging in the United States. In the same year that Trimble was founded, the first GPS satellite NavStar was successfully launched.

Mr. Charlie Trimble is very interested in this space-based positioning system, because when GPS is deployed, it will contain at least 24 in-orbit positioning satellites, so the position of any point on the earth can be determined with high accuracy. Recognizing that this unique new technology has great potential to change the way the world is modeled, Mr. Charlie and other founders set a goal for the company to fully develop immature GPS technology, and Trimble bought emerging GPS technology from Hewlett-Packard Company.

By concentrating resources to develop innovative products and making full use of expanded GPS capabilities, Trimble not only takes the lead in the commercial application of GPS, but also extends the application of GPS to the traditional surveying and mapping and navigation markets, redefining and reviving them, because both markets are highly dependent on positioning technology. The perfect integration of GPS technology and other technologies such as wireless communication will surely give birth to many emerging market opportunities centered on positioning information.

1982, Trimble seized the opportunity that the American government had just successfully launched a GPS satellite and began the engineering process of GPS products. Trimble, the first product using GPS technology, benefited applications that need accurate measurement, and the product began to be applied to land survey and hydrological survey industries. 1984, Trimble Company launched the world's first commercial scientific research and marine geological mapping product based on GPS technology, which was mainly used by oil drilling teams on offshore platforms.

Sailors soon began to use GPS positioning information to accurately determine the position of target points and calculate the speed of ships in real time, which enhanced the navigation performance of ships between various target points.

During the period from 1984 to 1988, Tianbao not only made great progress in scientific research and application products, but also made great progress in the navigation market. The next two years are two years of explosive growth and expansion of Tianbao Company. Trimble has won more than 700 American and foreign patents for its groundbreaking technology. With the development of GPS and other technologies, GPS has become an indispensable technology in the rapidly developing commercial market. During this period, Trimble also successfully entered other commercial application markets by acquiring other companies.

From 65438 to 0989, Tianbao successfully acquired the navigation system department of TAU Company and began to develop differential global positioning system (DGPS) technology to provide higher positioning accuracy for the fleet management market. 1990, Tianbao also acquired Datacom software research company in New Zealand, which not only made new progress in expanding the market, but also enabled Tianbao to provide new surveying and mapping software products.

The early 1990s was an exciting golden age for this thriving new company. 1990, Tianbao became the first publicly listed global positioning system company with the stock issuance code of TRMB. In the same year, Trimble product line became a special GPS product line. During this period, Tianbao continued to spare no effort to carry out technological innovation. For example, Trimble is the first to realize the perfect integration of GPS technology and communication technology, which not only allows users to accurately locate any position on the earth's surface, but also can share information. Trimble's Inmarsat-C GPS system enables long-distance trucks and ships to keep in touch with the headquarters base at any time, share the forecast information of arrival time, and accurately coordinate the delivery of goods in the same period.

1992, Trimble successfully developed the real-time dynamic survey (RTK) technology, which realized the real-time update of GPS data during the moving process. RTK technology is a revolutionary and innovative technology for surveyors. From then on, GPS equipment can not only carry out topographic mapping and monitoring, but also obtain geographic information system (GIS) data for real-time completion survey.

In the next few years, Trimble's GPS technology has made rapid progress. In 1994, Trimble took the lead in developing a GPS receiver that can be integrated into a PC card. Only one year later, Trimble was the first to introduce a plug-and-play GPS sensor for laptops and PDAs. Global Positioning System (GPS) is developing into an increasingly indispensable new practical tool. With the continuous progress of technology, the integration of chipset is getting higher and higher, and the manufacturing cost and power consumption are significantly reduced.

1998, Trimble took the lead in integrating GPS and cellular communication technology into a circuit board; From 65438 to 0999, Trimble GPS was applied to the positioning communication equipment of Seiko Epson Company, which is the first set of combined communication equipment in the world, integrating four functions of PDA, mobile phone, personal navigator and digital camera.

Under the leadership of Steve Berglund, Tianbao has been developing and innovating continuously, and successfully entered the new millennium. In 2000, Trimble took the lead in successfully developing a GPS architecture, that is, FirstGPS technology, and integrated GPS technology into more products by using the great progress of the host product CPU.

In 2000, Trimble also successfully acquired Spectra Precision Group, which is a leading positioning solution provider in the industry, mainly targeting the construction, surveying and agricultural markets. Through this M&A activity, Trimble obtained important positioning technology resources complementary to the global positioning system, including lasers and other optical positioning equipment.

In the same year, Trimble also successfully acquired Tripod Data Systems (TDS), a leading data acquisition software and hardware developer in the industry, mainly targeting the land survey, construction and GIS markets. These two M&A activities are an important part of Tianbao's development strategic objectives, aiming at defining and changing the application mode centered on positioning information.

In April, 20001year, Trimble established the mobile solutions department to provide Internet-based location services for mobile offices. This new feature enables Trimble to make full use of its existing wireless business capabilities, provide a complete end-to-end fleet management solution, and focus on expanding emerging markets that support positioning mobile devices.

In April 2002, Trimble and Caterpillar established a joint venture, Caterpillar Trimble Controls Technologies LLC, to develop the next generation of advanced electronic navigation and control products, which are mainly used in earth-moving machinery in construction, mining and waste disposal industries. The mechanical control products developed by the joint venture company automatically control the bulldozer blade and other mechanical tools by using the field design information and combining with the precise positioning technology. This industry-leading mechanical control technology perfectly combines the time-honored Trimble positioning technology with the advanced functions obtained through the acquisition of Spectra Precision. This joint venture is the exclusive supplier of Tianbao and Caterpillar, and uses the independent distribution channels of the two companies to sell, distribute, support and serve the products of the enterprises. Caterpillar provides factory installation options for products, while Trimble continues to emphasize the after-sales service of earthmoving machinery from Caterpillar and other equipment manufacturers.

In March 2003, Tianbao and Nikon established a joint venture company Nikon-Tianbao Co., Ltd. in Japan, mainly for the surveying and mapping instrument market. As a party of the joint venture company, Tianbao acquired 50% shares of Nikon-Tianbao Co., Ltd., which also undertook the operation task of Nikon Geotecs Co., Ltd. in Japan. This new enterprise entity is mainly engaged in the design and manufacture of surveying and mapping instruments, including the design and manufacture of mechanical total station and related products. This joint venture company not only distributes Nikon surveying and mapping products in Japan, but also distributes Trimble surveying and mapping products, including GPS and automatic total station. In the international market outside Japan, Trimble has become the exclusive distributor of Nikon's surveying and mapping and construction products. Through geographical expansion and market penetration, the joint venture has further expanded Tianbao's market share in the field of surveying and mapping instruments. Nikon Instruments not only expanded Trimble's portfolio of measurement and construction products, but also enabled the company to better enter emerging markets in Russia, Eastern Europe, India and China. It enables Trimble to sell its own GPS and total station technology to existing Nikon users all over the world. In addition, the new company has increased Trimble's market share in Japan, which remains the main market for surveying and mapping instruments.

In June, 2003, Trimble successfully acquired Applanix, Ontario, Canada, which is a leading developer of inertial navigation system (INS) and GPS technology system integration. The acquisition not only expanded Trimble's technical resources, but also enhanced the function and robustness of its future positioning products. The focus of this merger is on its surveying and mapping and building product lines. GPS products enhanced by inertial navigation system (INS) technology can not only improve the satellite tracking ability, but also accelerate the capture speed, thus achieving accurate RTK positioning. These advantages are particularly important when the GPS satellite signal is blocked, especially in the urban areas with many high-rise buildings and lush trees.

From June 5438 to February 2003, Trimble successfully acquired France MENSI Co., Ltd., which is the leading developer of terrestrial 3D scanning technology in the industry. Adding three-dimensional scanning technology to Trimble's other positioning technologies can not only accelerate the development of new products, but also further improve Trimble's work efficiency and production capacity in the existing surveying, mapping, engineering and construction markets. Compared with other tools, 3D scanning technology enables users to collect and use more 3D data.

In July 2004, Trimble successfully acquired GeoNav Company in Wunstorf, Germany, which is a customized field data acquisition solution provider, mainly targeting the European cadastral survey market. Increasing GeoNav's software resources, technical expertise and products will not only make Trimble better meet the local application needs, but also provide customized measurement solutions for the European market. GeoNav's software product suite can work seamlessly with Trimble's complete surveying and mapping system product line, including GPS mobile stations, base stations and optical total stations. They can also provide the function of obtaining, processing and displaying accurate real-time measurement results.

From June 5438 to October 2005, Trimble successfully acquired Pacific Crest Company in Santa Clara, California, to further expand its wireless communication capabilities. Pacific Crest is a leading provider of wireless data communication systems in the industry, mainly used for positioning and environmental monitoring applications. Pacific Crest's high-quality radio modem can provide the necessary data link to improve GPS accuracy. In order to improve the precision performance and make full use of the application advantages of wireless communication, including RTK survey and construction machinery control of earthwork transportation.

In April 2005, Trimble successfully acquired Apache Technologies in Dayton, Ohio, USA. Apache is mainly responsible for the design, manufacture and distribution of professional laser products for building standards and calibration applications. The acquisition of Apache has further expanded Trimble's laser product portfolio, which is mainly used for hand-held laser detectors and entry-level mechanical display control systems. Apache products set a new benchmark in performance, accuracy, robustness, reliability and repeatability for their respective markets and price ranges.

From June 5438, 2005 to 2005 10, Tianbao Company successfully acquired MobileTech Solutions (MTS) in Dallas, Texas, USA, in order to better strengthen on-site staff management. MTS can not only provide on-site employee automation management solutions, but also occupy a leading market position in the direct delivery (DSD) industry. At that time, there were about 200,000 vehicles in the DSD industry. MTS solution can automatically sell and send a large number of consumer goods to retail stores, such as baked goods, beverages, dairy products and frozen foods. Through hand-held mobile computing equipment, real-time information is provided to mobile field employees, thus improving customer service level and realizing on-time delivery and accurate pricing. This turnkey solution includes all kinds of mobile hardware and software, which can be seamlessly integrated with the supplier's existing enterprise resource planning software system. Through this acquisition, Trimble can submit highly integrated fleet management and mobile computing solutions to the DSD industry.

From June 5438, 2006 to October 2006, Trimble successfully acquired Advanced Public Safety Company (APS) in Deerfield Beach, Florida, USA. APS is a leading software development company in the industry, mainly developing mobile and handheld software products used by law enforcement departments, fire rescue departments and public security departments. APS software provides real-time information to the police through on-board computers and handheld mobile computing devices, thus improving accuracy, security and work efficiency. APS software can be seamlessly integrated with computer aided dispatch (CAD), crime database and file management system of public security department. In addition, APS can provide a variety of software solutions for firefighters and rescuers to help complete investigation reports and emergency medical reports, as well as measurement and automatic vehicle positioning (AVL) applications. Through the acquisition of APS, Trimble intends to make full use of Tripod Data Systems' robust mobile computing equipment and Trimble Mobile Solutions' fleet management system to provide a complete mobile resource solution for the public safety industry.

In February 2006, Trimble successfully acquired the intellectual property rights of XYZs, a GPS company in Maryland, USA. The XYZs of GPS mainly develops the integrity monitoring and dynamic positioning software of the reference station of the real-time global navigation satellite system (GNSS), which is applied to meter-level, decimeter-level and centimeter-level precision. The acquisition of intellectual property rights of XYZs of GPS further expands the product portfolio of Trimble infrastructure solutions, and the software it provides enhances the differential GNSS correction system, which can help marine applications such as navigation, surveying and mapping, civil engineering, hydrogeology, cartography and GIS, and scientific research.

In April 2006, Tianbao successfully acquired Australia's Quantm International Company and its subsidiary Quantm Limited. Quantm is a leading provider of transportation route optimization software, which is mainly used for the planning of highways, railways, pipelines and canals. This innovative software system enables infrastructure planners to check and select routing channels and optimize many factors, such as construction cost, environmental restrictions, avoiding existing terrain and complying with legal obligations at the same time. The improved solution to the proposed route can significantly reduce the time and cost of project planning. The transportation route adjustment function generated by Quantm software makes Trimble's strategy of connecting construction sites even more powerful, and forms a closer connection between the planning stage and the design stage of transportation projects. The ultimate goal of joint operation is to improve work efficiency by strengthening the integration of building process information.

In May 2006, Trimble successfully acquired Eleven Technology Company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Eleventh Technology is a mobile application software company, which has a leading market position and technical advantages in the consumer goods (CPG) industry. Eleven Technology solutions can automatically sell and distribute a large number of consumer goods, such as food, beverages and dairy products, to retail stores. It provides real-time information to mobile field employees in time by holding mobile computing equipment, thus improving customer service level and realizing on-time delivery and accurate pricing. Eleven Technology has a complete set of solutions for the mass consumer goods industry, including various application software for sales representatives, transport drivers, businessmen, field service technicians and managers. The solution includes all kinds of mobile hardware and software, which can be seamlessly integrated with the supplier's existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) software system. By acquiring Mobile Tech Solutions and Eleven Technology, Trimble not only further established its leading position in this vertical industry market, but also integrated its mobile employees and fleet management application software into a fully integrated mobile resource management solution.

In May 2006, Trimble successfully acquired the assets of BitWyse Solutions Company in Salem, Massachusetts, USA. BitWyse is a leading data management company in the industry, mainly engaged in two-dimensional and three-dimensional application software in engineering and construction factory design. The acquisition of BitWyse's assets has further expanded the portfolio of Trimble 3D scanning solutions, which can provide application-specific software functions in vertical markets such as energy, processing and production plants. These markets are increasingly using 3D scanning data to create as-built drawings, verify building design specifications and improve work efficiency.

From June 5438, 2006 to October 2006, Trimble successfully acquired Visual Statement Company in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. Visual statement mainly provides the most modern software tools, which can be used for investigation, analysis and reconstruction of crimes and collision accidents, and also provides nationwide enterprise solutions for public security departments to declare and analyze. The company's increased investment in mobile solutions business can provide strong support for Tianbao's business development strategy of providing efficient solutions to mobile employees. The acquisition of Visual Statement can form a complementary relationship with Trimble's subsidiary Advanced Public Safety (APS). The perfect combination of APS and visual statement can provide a wide range of solutions for public security departments in the United States.

From June 5, 2006 to 2006 10, Tianbao successfully acquired XYZ Solutions Company in Alfareta, Georgia, USA. XYZ solution mainly provides real-time, interactive and three-dimensional intelligent software, which can be used to manage the spatial relationship of building projects. XYZ solution software can transform data from different sources into actionable information. By using this information in the decision-making process, engineers and technicians can reduce rework and improve work efficiency. XYZ Solutions' unique three-dimensional software package allows users to model spatial information, combine various positioning technologies, and intuitively "view" the construction site or assets anytime and anywhere in an Internet-based collaborative environment. In the interactive environment, decision support guidelines or business rules can be integrated into the solution set, which can actually model the "hypothetical" background of the project in real time, which can not only increase customers' right to know, but also improve profitability. The acquisition of XYZ Solutions can add three-dimensional visualization elements to Tianbao Internet construction site strategy.

In June 2006, Trimble successfully acquired Meridian Systems in Folsom, California. Meridian Systems is a recognized market leader in the field of construction project management technology, mainly for building owners and AEC market. Meridian Systems mainly provides enterprise project management and life cycle software for real estate, construction and other physical infrastructure projects. The use of meridian technology by building owners, contractors, engineering construction companies and government departments can not only reduce the construction capital cost, but also improve the work efficiency of the project. Merging with Meridian Systems can add enterprise lifecycle management software elements to Trimble's interconnected construction site strategy.

In February 2007, Tianbao successfully acquired @Road Company, which was publicly sold in fremont, California, USA, and increased its investment in Tianbao Mobile Solutions (TMS) to strengthen its development strategy in this field. The acquisition of @Road established Trimble as a market leader in providing mobile resource management (MRM) solutions. In addition to the industry-leading technology, @Road has developed in-depth industry expertise, and has strong field service management capabilities within the scope of MRM solutions, which can easily meet the challenges faced by all walks of life, including transportation, logistics and distribution, telecommunications, cables, field services, public utilities, equipment management and public works. The merger can supplement Trimble's existing expertise and better serve the construction supply, direct delivery of stores, public safety and public utilities industries.

In February 2007, Tianbao also successfully acquired INPHO Company in Stuttgart, Germany. INPHO is an industry leader in photogrammetry and digital surface modeling, which is mainly used in aerial survey, mapping and remote sensing applications. The users of INPHO products are mainly service companies, which collect geospatial data through photogrammetry and lidar and provide geospatial information to government departments. The function of photogrammetry has added a new business field to Tianbao, which can better enter the geospatial information industry, while Tianbao's original business focus is on positioning solutions based on the ground or the earth.

In September 2007, Trimble successfully acquired Ingenieurburo Breining Company in Kirchheim, Germany. Breining is a provider of customized on-site data acquisition and internal software solutions, mainly for the German surveying and cadastral market. The software resources, expertise and products of Breining have been increased, which enables Trimble to better meet the local application needs and provide customized measurement solutions for the German market.

From June 2007 +2007 10, Trimble acquired UtilityCenter from the private UAI company in Huntsville, Alabama, to enhance Trimble's on-site and mobile employee solutions in the utility market. Assets. UtilityCenter software can provide a wide range of complete workflow solutions, which can fully automate the daily business operations of public utilities, from business management, asset inventory, power outage management, work order tracking to compliance management reports and site map updates. The acquisition of UtilityCenter software enables Trimble to provide industry-specific on-site solutions for power and gas utility customers. With a complete set of powerful data acquisition and mobile computing equipment, TerraSync field assets software and UtilityCenter software, Trimble customers can make many complicated daily operations very simple. UtilityCenter software for power and natural gas utilities market and Fieldport software designed and developed by Trimble for tap water/wastewater treatment utilities market can complement each other.

In the past few years, corporate mergers and acquisitions have been playing a very important role in Trimble's development strategy, mainly as a development mechanism to build a bridgehead in the new market space, fill the gaps in product lines, or add new technologies to solutions. More importantly, continuous technological innovation and the accumulation of industry expertise are the main driving forces for the company's development, which makes Trimble always committed to organic development as its main development strategy. The core market areas of the company's development include engineering, construction, agriculture, mobile and on-site staff management and advanced equipment.

With the rapid development of communication standards, computer technology and application software, Trimble has always kept the pace of continuous progress, perfectly integrating GPS information and other positioning technologies with other data sources and data types. Trimble is not only the leader of GPS technology, but also the real leader of information technology. It perfectly integrates other technologies such as wireless communication and information technology with positioning technologies such as GPS, and keeps it at the forefront of the information revolution.

Today, engineers around Trimble are pushing the development of the most advanced positioning technologies, some of which were almost unimaginable a few years ago. With more than 500 products, Trimble continues to lead the development of positioning technology-centered solutions to meet the most complex challenges in the world. Trimble technology can be seen everywhere in consumer goods, civil vehicles, construction equipment, agricultural machinery, computers, PDA and other fields. Various innovative applications emerge in an endless stream, including fleet scheduling and management, road survey and construction, monitoring and measurement of earthquake damage, recording and synchronization of international financial transactions, and improving the efficiency of wireless communication networks. Trimble is changing the way people work through the perfect combination of positioning technology and improving efficiency.

Trimble's operating income in 1999 was about $270 million, which has increased to more than $940 million in 2006. Trimble's business portfolio is increasing day by day. It abandons the concept of "box product" and develops into a product and solution portfolio model, which greatly improves production efficiency. It is this steady and steady development strategy, huge R&D investment and stable and reliable financial performance that will surely push Tianbao towards a bright future.