目次

• GNSS受信機レンタル手配不要：1人で使える即戦力のcm級高精度LRTK

• GNSS受信機レンタルの課題とコスト構造

• 軽量・高精度・手配いらず：LRTKがもたらす新たな可能性

• 建設・インフラ・防災…LRTKの活用事例

• ポケットサイズで1人完結：新しい測量作業のスタイル

• iPhone連携の魅力：ARによる確認と点群スキャン

• まとめ：LRTKが実現する手軽な高精度測量

High-precision positioning using rented GNSS receivers is commonly seen on construction sites and in surveying work. GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) is the general term for satellite-based positioning technologies including GPS, and using dedicated high-precision GNSS receivers enables the acquisition of centimeter-level position data indispensable for mapping and construction management. However, because of their high performance, these devices tend to be expensive and bulky. For this reason, renting GNSS receivers only when needed may seem like a cost-effective solution at first glance. Nonetheless, there are several logistical and cost-related challenges with rentals that can actually hinder on-site productivity.

This article explains the common challenges and cost structure of renting GNSS receivers and introduces LRTK, a cm-level high-precision positioning device that serves as an immediately usable tool for a single operator. LRTK is a pocket-sized lightweight device that, when paired with an iPhone, makes high-precision positioning easy. Not only does it eliminate the need to arrange rental equipment, it also enables surveying workflows that can be completed by one person without relying on a team. We will look at how this solution, increasingly used across construction, infrastructure, and disaster response, can transform field operations through concrete examples.

GNSS受信機レンタルの課題とコスト構造

First, let’s organize the typical challenges and cost structure of conventional GNSS receiver rentals. Borrowing high-precision GNSS equipment temporarily reduces upfront investment but has the following drawbacks.

• Arranging rentals takes time and effort: Renting equipment requires prior reservation and coordination. You need to secure the schedule to ensure the desired date and time, and handle communications and contractual procedures with the rental company. If an urgent surveying task arises, there is a risk that the equipment won’t be available right away, depending on inventory.

• Rental fees add up: GNSS receivers are sophisticated surveying instruments, so rental fees are high. Depending on the model and rental period, it’s not uncommon for costs to range from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yen for use spanning several days to weeks. Repeated rentals can accumulate costs, and over the long term may equal or exceed the expense of purchasing equipment outright.

• Ancillary costs and personnel: In addition to the equipment rental fee, there may be transport costs, insurance premiums, and security deposits. High-precision positioning often requires setting up base stations and data communication, which can incur separate network RTK communication contracts or service fees. Moreover, operating rented GNSS equipment requires expertise, so securing skilled surveyors or operators must also be considered.

• Lack of flexibility: Rental periods are limited, so if you need “a little more measurement” or your schedule is extended, additional extension procedures and fees apply. Since rented equipment is not owned by your company, you must handle it carefully; in case of breakdown or damage there are risks such as compensation or repair costs. The inability to use equipment instantly or freely can weigh down field agility.

As shown above, operating via GNSS receiver rentals involves both cost and administrative burdens. Of course, short-term rentals can be cheaper than purchasing and allow testing of the latest models, but on frequently used sites it’s often felt that “renting every time is inefficient.” Is there a way to eliminate these issues while making high-precision positioning more accessible? One answer is the new option introduced next: LRTK.

軽量・高精度・手配いらず：LRTKがもたらす新たな可能性

As an alternative to GNSS receiver rentals, our company has developed LRTK. LRTK is a palm-sized RTK-GNSS receiver that pairs with a smartphone and provides a ready-to-use tool for centimeter-level positioning without rental arrangements. Its key features are summarized as follows.

• Pocket-sized, lightweight device: LRTK weighs only a few hundred grams (comparable to a smartphone) and has an ultra-compact design about 1 cm thick. Compared to conventional stationary GNSS receivers and long antennas, it is overwhelmingly compact and offers the portability to be carried in workwear pockets while walking the site. There’s no need to carry large tripods or heavy equipment, reducing physical burden.

• Ready to use with an iPhone: Attach LRTK to an iPhone (or iPad) with a dedicated smartphone attachment or case and launch the dedicated app to begin positioning. No complex initial setup or specialized controller is required; all you need is the LRTK unit, a smartphone, and a communication environment. Once satellite signals are received, high-precision positioning starts immediately, enabling measurements on the spot whenever needed.

• cm-level high-precision positioning with RTK: LRTK incorporates the latest high-performance GNSS chip and supports multiple satellite systems (multi-GNSS) such as GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and Michibiki (QZSS). By utilizing multiple frequency bands such as L1/L2, it achieves stable positioning, and the RTK (Real Time Kinematic) method reduces positioning errors to within a few centimeters. RTK positioning, which previously required a two-unit base-and-rover setup, can be realized with LRTK as a single unit plus communication service.

• Reliable even outside communication coverage: Typical RTK requires real-time correction data, but LRTK supports Japan’s Michibiki-provided centimeter-level augmentation service (CLAS). Therefore, even in mountainous or disaster-stricken areas where internet communication is disrupted, it can receive correction signals directly from satellites and continue high-precision positioning. This performance in areas without cellular coverage makes it excellent for reliability in emergencies.

• Affordable and easy to adopt: Compared with general high-precision GNSS equipment, LRTK is more cost-effective to introduce. You can use existing iPhones or iPads you already own, eliminating the need to purchase dedicated surveying controllers or large antennas. The device itself is priced far more reasonably than large surveying instruments, making the prospect of “one unit per person” realistic. In many cases, purchasing LRTK as an asset proves more cost-efficient than repeatedly paying long-term rental fees.

As described, LRTK combines high precision, light weight, no rental arrangements, and cost efficiency, offering the potential to greatly change field positioning workflows. In the next section, we’ll look at concrete use cases showing which field operations can be easily handled by a single operator using LRTK.

建設・インフラ・防災…LRTKの活用事例

LRTK’s features are useful across a wide range of fields. Here we introduce how LRTK brings efficiency and change to surveying in construction, infrastructure maintenance, disaster response, and surveying operations.

• Surveying and stakeout on construction sites: In civil engineering and construction, high-precision positioning is essential for pre-foundation topographic surveys, as-built management during construction, and stakeout tasks. Tasks traditionally performed by a two-person team using a total station can be completed by one person with LRTK and a smartphone. For example, measuring multiple ground elevations on a development site and calculating cross-sectional averages in real time, or marking stakeout points on-site based on design coordinates—these can be done by site supervisors directly. Measurement data can be uploaded to the cloud and shared, reducing the need to return to the office to prepare drawings. Walking around a large site is easy with a pocket-sized device, and being able to measure whenever needed dramatically improves the speed and accuracy of construction management.

• Inspection and maintenance of infrastructure: For roads, bridges, tunnels, and railways, it is important to record the exact location of cracks or damage. With LRTK and a smartphone, simply taking a photo automatically records the latitude/longitude and camera orientation and saves it on a cloud map. Inspectors no longer need to mark locations on paper maps or sort photos back at the office. Since coordinate data from previous inspections remain, AR navigation can guide you back to the same point accurately on subsequent inspections. For railway track inspections, walking along the track while logging continuous positioning with LRTK enables measurement of rail subsidence, allowing data collection using previously difficult methods. In mountainous rail sections, CLAS-capable LRTK maintains positioning without cellular coverage, and high-precision data can be centrally managed in the cloud and shared among stakeholders. LRTK is expected to bring reliability and efficiency to infrastructure management.

• Disaster response and emergency surveying: In disaster zones following earthquakes or floods, rapid measurement and sharing of damage is required. LRTK is a mobile positioning device that demonstrates strong capability in emergencies. For example, in the affected area, a single operator can repeatedly measure locations of collapsed buildings or landslide sites and share the information with headquarters in real time via the cloud. Large-scale disasters can sever communications, but as noted above, LRTK can receive correction information from satellites and continue high-precision positioning even outside network coverage. In Japan’s earthquake response scenes, LRTK has proven useful where transporting bulky equipment is impractical. Its small size allows easy transport by helicopter or on foot and contributes to rapid digital recording of damage. From initial damage surveys immediately after a disaster to progress management of recovery work, LRTK supports field personnel as their feet and eyes.

• Routine surveying and investigation tasks: For routine tasks such as topographic surveys and land surveys carried out by surveying firms and construction consultants, LRTK is a powerful tool. Measurements of elevation differences, boundary point checks, and as-built measurements that were once outsourced can now be performed in-house easily. LRTK can output positioning data in the Japan Geodetic Datum, facilitating seamless integration with CAD drawings and GIS data. Leveraging smartphone connectivity, you can also record notes and photos alongside positioning, or calculate earthwork volumes from acquired point cloud data, enabling one-stop workflows from field measurement to documentation. This allows technicians without specialized surveying expertise to perform accurate field checks, helping maintain quality where experienced personnel are scarce.

ポケットサイズで1人完結：新しい測量作業のスタイル

As noted above, using LRTK shifts the workflow from “multi-person surveying” to “quick single-operator measurements,” significantly changing work style and directly improving field efficiency. For example, leveling surveys and boundary checks that once required two or more people can be completed by a single operator mounting LRTK on a telescopic pole (monopod) and viewing the smartphone screen. The pocket-sized device is easy to handle and enables agility even in confined sites or elevated locations. Tasks that previously required assistants or helpers can now be handled alone, reducing the effort required to arrange personnel and lowering the burden of safety management for workers.

The concept of “one device per person, ready to measure at any time” updates how field operations are conducted. LRTK’s smartphone app provides intuitive on-screen guidance, enabling positioning and data recording with one-button simplicity. There is no need to worry about complex settings or calculations; without special skills, anyone from junior staff to veterans can immediately make effective use of the system. This makes it possible to perform measurements that are not dependent on individual expertise, which is a major advantage where experienced surveyors are scarce. The “democratization of surveying” enabled by single-operator workflows is likely to be a key driver of productivity improvements in the construction and civil engineering sectors.

iPhone連携の魅力：ARによる確認と点群スキャン

Because LRTK pairs with the iPhone, it can leverage digital features not available on traditional surveying instruments, chief among them AR (Augmented Reality) and point cloud scanning.

Using the dedicated app, you can display target points and lines from design data as AR overlays while walking the site, and follow real-time guidance to reach specified positions. By following arrows and markers on the phone screen, you can be navigated to stakeout points or past measurement locations with centimeter-level accuracy, so even on a first visit or during a delayed re-survey you can find the exact point without hesitation. AR-based on-site verification is far more reliable than relying on drawings or handheld GPS devices and intuition.

LRTK also pairs excellently with the LiDAR scanner available on higher-end iPhone models. LiDAR can scan surrounding terrain and structures to obtain 3D point cloud data, and LRTK can attach high-precision position coordinates to that data in real time. Tasks that previously required expensive 3D laser scanners or terrestrial surveys—such as as-built measurements and earthwork volume calculations—can now be performed on the spot with a smartphone and LRTK. Acquired point clouds are uploaded to the cloud immediately, allowing the office to review 3D models of the site and issue instructions in real time. The ability to record and share accurate 3D information from the field is a major benefit of integrating mobile devices and GNSS.

Photogrammetry is also powerful: photos taken with an LRTK-equipped smartphone automatically receive high-precision position tags and orientation metadata. Inspection photos are plotted on a map so you immediately know “where each photo was taken.” In the cloud, past and present photos can be overlaid to compare deterioration progression with a single tap. Without relying on paper records or human memory, you can achieve digitally backed, objective site understanding.

In these ways, the integration of LRTK and smartphones goes beyond mere positioning, combining AR, 3D scanning, and cloud integration to smarten field operations. These functions directly reduce site burdens and improve quality, adding value to surveying and inspection tasks.

まとめ：LRTKが実現する手軽な高精度測量

For sites troubled by the complexity and cost of GNSS receiver rentals, LRTK is a long-awaited new solution. Eliminating rental arrangements and enabling centimeter-level positioning anywhere, anytime with only a pocket-sized device and a smartphone dramatically lowers the barrier to surveying. Because measurements and data sharing can be completed on-site by a single operator, wasted time is cut and work proceeds more efficiently. Accurate measurements are possible even without highly skilled technicians, enabling stable quality control in an era of labor shortages.

Introducing LRTK shifts thinking from “rent equipment only when needed” to “routinely using high-precision equipment in-house.” While the technology may seem new at first, anyone familiar with smartphone apps can operate it intuitively, and the simple setup means the barrier to adoption is very low. Developed in response to field needs, this solution is already being used across construction, infrastructure, and disaster response.

If your site struggles with the hassle of GNSS receiver rentals or inefficiencies in surveying, consider easy high-precision positioning with LRTK. By embracing the latest technology, you can carry out field work with unprecedented speed and quality. Why not pioneer a new era of one-device-per-person high-precision GNSS together with LRTK?