Motorola Invests in TRX Systems

Motorola Solutions Venture Capital, the strategic investment arm of Motorola Solutions, has invested in TRX Systems Inc. The funding will be used in expanding Indoor Location System, sales and marketing. This investment is a part of the series A investment round which is worth about $2 million. The series A investment round includes New Dominion Angels, the Maryland Department of Economic Development and insider investors.

The investment in TRX System Inc. will fund integration of TRX NEON Indoor Location System with Motorola radios. The integration will thus expand TRX sensor fusion and mapping technology applied to industrial and commercial locations applications. The investment will also help in scaling up marketing.

NEON, an award-winning personnel tracking system, was developed by TRX Systems. NEON uses TRX sensor fusion and mapping technology to assimilate information from different sensors such as inertial, light, magnetic, ranging, pressure, RF and GPS and combines with available map information. The NEON personnel tracking system delivers location based data on people who are not covered by GPS or are indoors in buildings, tunnels or metros.

 “TRX sensor fusion and mapping technology uniquely delivers 3D indoor location in environments where it is not possible to rely on pre-existing and networked infrastructure,” said Carol Politi, president and chief executive officer of TRX Systems. “The market for indoor location is growing rapidly, and this funding, complemented by our sales revenues, will allow us to increase investments in indoor location development and accelerate entry in new markets.”

“The ability to locate personnel operating indoors and often in hazardous situations improves command effectiveness, increases personnel safety and ultimately saves lives,” said Mel Gaceta, investment manager, Motorola Solutions Venture Capital. “The TRX NEON Indoor Location System clearly complements Motorola Solutions’ capabilities to improve safety for mission-critical users.”

“Most indoor location technologies being deployed today count on precision mapping of RF signals (e.g., Wi-Fi) and require reliable floor plans,” said Carole Teolis, TRX co-founder and chief technology officer. “TRX NEON indoor location technology uses sensor-fusion and map discovery technologies to deliver robust location estimates even without permanent infrastructure or comprehensive floor plans. This allows indoor location to be delivered when you do not control the building and when building infrastructure and maps are simply not reliable.”

Motorola Solutions provides mission-critical communication solutions and services for enterprise and government customers through leading-edge innovation and communications technology. Motorola Solutions Venture Capital seeks out “new-idea” companies. It is also focused on companies and solutions that complement Motorola Solution’s business strategy.