European GNSS Agency

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is busy making plans for the next adventure in app building, and the new 2016 Galileo Hackathon video shows you what it’s all about.

Last year teams of passionate coders and geo-enthusiasts from around the world gathered to compete during the first GSA Galileo Hackathon. It was a great opportunity to showcase coding skills, connect with the Geo-IoT (Internet of Things) app development community, and gain a competitive insight on what Galileo location-based services (LBS) can bring to your mobile device.

The challenge: to come up with an innovative application that makes full use of Galileo’s unique capabilities in 24 hours or less. Following an energetic, busy and pizza-infused day, the judges announced the winners. Taking home the prize for the most innovative app was the Didactic Disco multi-player map game, described as “a fun map drawing game, but one that has potential for serious use too”. Meanwhile, the Rovers_Movers neighbourhood watch app won the prize for most potential to make an impact on society.

The highlight reel

Now, you can relive all the excitement of the first Galileo Hackathon – while already starting to think about the next edition – with a new video:

1st Galileo Hackathon - watch the video here

If that video leaves you excited and ready to empower your app with Galileo, there’s good news! The GSA is already planning the next adventure in app building, scheduled to coincide with infoShare 2017, 17 to 19 May in Gdansk, Poland.

“We will again be bringing together chipset manufacturers, mobile device manufacturers, academia and the best Geo-IoT and LBS app developers to learn about how to leverage the benefits of Galileo and to compete in our second hackathon,” says GSA Market Development Officer Justyna Redelkiewicz Musial.   

Hackathoners can expect prizes, webinars, learning opportunities and a chance to meet the people behind the hardware and software that enables satellite navigation and Galileo applications.

Interested in taking your location-based app to the next level? You can already pre-register here. And be sure to stay tuned for information on the next Galileo Hackathon.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Two GSA-funded projects – BELS and GNSS.asia – are encouraging the use of European GNSS in Asia through the launch of two innovation competitions. 

According to the most recent edition of the GSA’s GNSS Market Report, Asia is the ‘hot spot’ for global navigation satellite systems (GNSS). In fact, it is currently the primary region of global market growth in terms of in-use GNSS devices. The region is forecasted to grow 11 % per year, from 1.7 billion in 2014 to 4.1 billion devices in 2023 – more than the EU and North America combined. Furthermore, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) notes that the region is becoming increasingly active in chipset manufacturing, along with building its own constellations.

Asia is clearly an important market for GNSS and, as such, the GSA is dedicated to ensuring European businesses are in a position to benefit from it. As part of this effort, the GSA is actively engaged with two Horizon 2020-funded projects geared towards supporting European interests within the Asian GNSS market.

Also read: Promoting European interests in the Asian GNSS market

The BELS project aims to facilitate the breakthrough of European GNSS (EGNSS) technology in South-East Asia (SEA). To accomplish this, the project is conducting a set of coordinated activities to raise awareness and build capacities for the exploitation of EGNSS technologies. GNSS.asia, on the other hand, is dedicated to developing and implementing GNSS industrial cooperation between European and Asia-Pacific GNSS industries, with a focus on the downstream market. GNSS.asia maintains a team of GNSS and industry experts in its target regions of India, China, Taiwan, Korea and Japan that lend individual support to European companies.

Also read: Testing the NAVIS waters

In conjunction with last year’s European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC), both projects have launched their own competitions.

The BELS Special Prize

The BELS Special Prize looks for innovative downstream applications that use Galileo and have a substantial positive impact on SEA countries. Participants compete for a EUR 2 000 cash prize that can be applied towards their research. In addition, the winner is invited to spend six months at a European incubator or research centre, where they can refine their idea and work towards developing a prototype. A budget of EUR 20 000 is provided to cover the associated travel and living expenses for two people.  

The latest prize was awarded to the Autism Trigger, Tracking and Trace (ATTracT) project from Malaysia. Approximately 9 000 children are born with autism in Malaysia every year. One of the key challenges for parents raising an autistic child is protecting them against their propensity to wander. The ATTracT project looks to solve this challenge with the help of a GNSS. The application sets up virtually defined movement zones that can be activated in accordance with a child’s daily schedule. If a child wanders outside the predefined zone, the parent will receive an alert on their mobile phone, which they can then use to track their child in real-time. The project is also working on a similar monitoring and tracking system that can be used by schools or rehabilitation centres. This system will allow the user to track the movement of all the children under their supervision at the same time.   

The GNSS.asia Challenge

The GNSS.asia Challenge is open to anyone from the Asia-Pacific region with an innovative business, service or product based on multi-GNSS. In addition to potential access to the impressive ENC prize pool, winners receive free business coaching from renowned GNSS experts and travel grants to attend award ceremonies in Manila and Madrid. Winners are also given the chance to meet GNSS industry partners from across Asia and Europe and to present their project at the GNSS.asia Industry Seminar.

This year, the GNSS.asia Challenge attracted a record 60 complete entries, making it the most successful ESNC region. The winner was Frank Tsai from the Taiwanese Institute for Information Industry for his Drone Video Capturing (DVC) concept. DVC combines drones with another rapidly developing GNSS market segment: the Internet of Things (IoT). The team is targeting the entertainment industry, allowing producers to capture aerial-based close-up shots of important people within large crowds or events. When a drone’s GNSS location matches that of a pre-registered individual in the crowd, it delivers content with customised close-ups of that particular person. The DVC application then enables interactive sharing and viewing of images and video among the user community and on established social networks.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Two GSA-funded projects – BELS and GNSS.asia – are encouraging the use of European GNSS in Asia through the launch of two innovation competitions. 

According to the most recent edition of the GSA’s GNSS Market Report, Asia is the ‘hot spot’ for global navigation satellite systems (GNSS). In fact, it is currently the primary region of global market growth in terms of in-use GNSS devices. The region is forecasted to grow 11 % per year, from 1.7 billion in 2014 to 4.1 billion devices in 2023 – more than the EU and North America combined. Furthermore, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) notes that the region is becoming increasingly active in chipset manufacturing, along with building its own constellations.

Asia is clearly an important market for GNSS and, as such, the GSA is dedicated to ensuring European businesses are in a position to benefit from it. As part of this effort, the GSA is actively engaged with two Horizon 2020-funded projects geared towards supporting European interests within the Asian GNSS market.

Also read: Promoting European interests in the Asian GNSS market

The BELS project aims to facilitate the breakthrough of European GNSS (EGNSS) technology in South-East Asia (SEA). To accomplish this, the project is conducting a set of coordinated activities to raise awareness and build capacities for the exploitation of EGNSS technologies. GNSS.asia, on the other hand, is dedicated to developing and implementing GNSS industrial cooperation between European and Asia-Pacific GNSS industries, with a focus on the downstream market. GNSS.asia maintains a team of GNSS and industry experts in its target regions of India, China, Taiwan, Korea and Japan that lend individual support to European companies.

Also read: Testing the NAVIS waters

In conjunction with last year’s European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC), both projects have launched their own competitions.

The BELS Special Prize

The BELS Special Prize looks for innovative downstream applications that use Galileo and have a substantial positive impact on SEA countries. Participants compete for a EUR 2 000 cash prize that can be applied towards their research. In addition, the winner is invited to spend six months at a European incubator or research centre, where they can refine their idea and work towards developing a prototype. A budget of EUR 20 000 is provided to cover the associated travel and living expenses for two people.  

The latest prize was awarded to the Autism Trigger, Tracking and Trace (ATTracT) project from Malaysia. Approximately 9 000 children are born with autism in Malaysia every year. One of the key challenges for parents raising an autistic child is protecting them against their propensity to wander. The ATTracT project looks to solve this challenge with the help of a GNSS. The application sets up virtually defined movement zones that can be activated in accordance with a child’s daily schedule. If a child wanders outside the predefined zone, the parent will receive an alert on their mobile phone, which they can then use to track their child in real-time. The project is also working on a similar monitoring and tracking system that can be used by schools or rehabilitation centres. This system will allow the user to track the movement of all the children under their supervision at the same time.   

The GNSS.asia Challenge

The GNSS.asia Challenge is open to anyone from the Asia-Pacific region with an innovative business, service or product based on multi-GNSS. In addition to potential access to the impressive ENC prize pool, winners receive free business coaching from renowned GNSS experts and travel grants to attend award ceremonies in Manila and Madrid. Winners are also given the chance to meet GNSS industry partners from across Asia and Europe and to present their project at the GNSS.asia Industry Seminar.

This year, the GNSS.asia Challenge attracted a record 60 complete entries, making it the most successful ESNC region. The winner was Frank Tsai from the Taiwanese Institute for Information Industry for his Drone Video Capturing (DVC) concept. DVC combines drones with another rapidly developing GNSS market segment: the Internet of Things (IoT). The team is targeting the entertainment industry, allowing producers to capture aerial-based close-up shots of important people within large crowds or events. When a drone’s GNSS location matches that of a pre-registered individual in the crowd, it delivers content with customised close-ups of that particular person. The DVC application then enables interactive sharing and viewing of images and video among the user community and on established social networks.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is set to announce the winners of the 2016 Farming by Satellite Prize on 23 January 2017 during the International Green Week exhibition in Berlin.

The GSA will announce the winners of its 2016 Farming by Satellite Prize on 23 January 2017 during the International Green Week exhibition being held at Messe Berlin. The prize awards students and young farmers submitting the most innovative ideas for using satellite technology to improve agricultural production, efficiency and profit. Entrants compete for a share of a EUR 13 000 cash prize, sponsored by key agriculture stakeholders, Claas and Bayer CropScience.

Over 85 individuals and teams registered for the contest, ultimately leading to 45 eligible submissions coming from 13 European and eight African countries (a separate, special prize is awarded to projects submitted by students and young farmers from Africa). From these submissions, an independent judging panel selected the following projects to make the final round:

• Cleverlrrig (Portugal): software development to support agricultural water management using remote sensing data.
• Eyecrop (Portugal): scanning pivots with multiple features, including irrigation decision support, plague and disease detection, weather monitoring and crop measurement.
• Glorify (Italy): a new forecasting system, tested in Italy, combining Earth observation and crop modelling to provide both quantitative and qualitative estimates for rice production.
• ISA Lille (France): connected cover crop, a technological application related to the optimisation of cover plants.
• Logic Farm (Belgium): a wide-ranging project using satellite data to address municipal green spaces and the loss of carbon and organic matter in agricultural soils.
• Niessen (Germany): add-on for implements enabling autonomous driving and optimal working depths.
• TTT Solutions (Czech Republic): web-based service providing temporal analysis, spectral indices, crop behaviour, and control and support for the payment of subsidies.

For the special Africa prize:

• Digifarm (Kenya): digital farm information access system that leverages mobile technology to provide farmers with real-time information on rainfall, wind patterns, plant health and the best crops to plant and market.
• Munzansel (Morocco): geological mapping and soil characterisation in identifying agricultural related hazards using freely-available Copernicus and Sentinel data, leading to best-practices for sustainable agriculture.
• 7 Saros (Kenya): using satellite technologies to optimise irrigation and fertiliser application. Project will support decisions on when to irrigate, which areas of a field to irrigate and whether or not conditions are optimal for applying fertiliser.

An expanding focus

The focus of many of this year’s entries was on the use of satellite information, remote sensing and GNSS for mapping in conjunction with geological, soil and vegetation data. “Entrants showed a good understanding of the potential for using the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) as a simple graphical indicator to analyse remote sensing measurements and to show the health and productivity of crops and other biomass,” says Judging Panel Chair Dr Andrew Speedy.

The judges also noted their pleasure in seeing some projects address novel crops, including rice in Europe and cocoa beans in Africa. The projects also covered a wide use of satellite information. “Projects covered irrigation requirements, insecticide use and soil organic matter remediation,” says GSA Market Development Officer and fellow judge Reinhard Blasi. “There were also several entries related to fisheries and aquaculture, all of which demonstrates another fertile field for the application of satellite systems, particularly remote sensing and resource mapping.”

In making their decision, the judges looked for relevance, feasibility, innovation and potential marketability. And although there can be only one winner, the entire judging panel agrees that all of the finalist projects clearly demonstrate the enormous potential that applying GNSS and Earth observation to agriculture can bring. “All of these excellent finalists make it clear that satellite information systems are being included in many university and college curricula throughout Europe,” says Dr Speedy. “The potential for engineering applications needs further encouragement and can only be achieved through the public-private collaboration seen in this prize.”

About the prize

The prize, an initiative of the GSA and the European Environment Agency, is open to students and young farmers across Europe and Africa with innovative ideas for using satellite technology to improve agricultural production, efficiency and profit, or to reduce the sector’s environmental impact.

Launched in 2012, the Farming by Satellite Prize, is held every two years.

The award ceremony is scheduled for 14:00 on Monday, 23 January 2017 at the European Commission’s Stand (number 3.2) in Messe Berlin. The announcement is being held as part of the GSA’s participation in International Green Week, a global tradeshow for the food, agriculture and gardening industries. Feel free to join the competitors.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is set to announce the winners of the 2016 Farming by Satellite Prize on 23 January 2017 during the International Green Week exhibition in Berlin.

The GSA will announce the winners of its 2016 Farming by Satellite Prize on 23 January 2017 during the International Green Week exhibition being held at Messe Berlin. The prize awards students and young farmers submitting the most innovative ideas for using satellite technology to improve agricultural production, efficiency and profit. Entrants compete for a share of a EUR 13 000 cash prize, sponsored by key agriculture stakeholders, Claas and Bayer CropScience.

Over 85 individuals and teams registered for the contest, ultimately leading to 45 eligible submissions coming from 13 European and eight African countries (a separate, special prize is awarded to projects submitted by students and young farmers from Africa). From these submissions, an independent judging panel selected the following projects to make the final round:

• Cleverlrrig (Portugal): software development to support agricultural water management using remote sensing data.
• Eyecrop (Portugal): scanning pivots with multiple features, including irrigation decision support, plague and disease detection, weather monitoring and crop measurement.
• Glorify (Italy): a new forecasting system, tested in Italy, combining Earth observation and crop modelling to provide both quantitative and qualitative estimates for rice production.
• ISA Lille (France): connected cover crop, a technological application related to the optimisation of cover plants.
• Logic Farm (Belgium): a wide-ranging project using satellite data to address municipal green spaces and the loss of carbon and organic matter in agricultural soils.
• Niessen (Germany): add-on for implements enabling autonomous driving and optimal working depths.
• TTT Solutions (Czech Republic): web-based service providing temporal analysis, spectral indices, crop behaviour, and control and support for the payment of subsidies.

For the special Africa prize:

• Digifarm (Kenya): digital farm information access system that leverages mobile technology to provide farmers with real-time information on rainfall, wind patterns, plant health and the best crops to plant and market.
• Munzansel (Morocco): geological mapping and soil characterisation in identifying agricultural related hazards using freely-available Copernicus and Sentinel data, leading to best-practices for sustainable agriculture.
• 7 Saros (Kenya): using satellite technologies to optimise irrigation and fertiliser application. Project will support decisions on when to irrigate, which areas of a field to irrigate and whether or not conditions are optimal for applying fertiliser.

An expanding focus

The focus of many of this year’s entries was on the use of satellite information, remote sensing and GNSS for mapping in conjunction with geological, soil and vegetation data. “Entrants showed a good understanding of the potential for using the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) as a simple graphical indicator to analyse remote sensing measurements and to show the health and productivity of crops and other biomass,” says Judging Panel Chair Dr Andrew Speedy.

The judges also noted their pleasure in seeing some projects address novel crops, including rice in Europe and cocoa beans in Africa. The projects also covered a wide use of satellite information. “Projects covered irrigation requirements, insecticide use and soil organic matter remediation,” says GSA Market Development Officer and fellow judge Reinhard Blasi. “There were also several entries related to fisheries and aquaculture, all of which demonstrates another fertile field for the application of satellite systems, particularly remote sensing and resource mapping.”

In making their decision, the judges looked for relevance, feasibility, innovation and potential marketability. And although there can be only one winner, the entire judging panel agrees that all of the finalist projects clearly demonstrate the enormous potential that applying GNSS and Earth observation to agriculture can bring. “All of these excellent finalists make it clear that satellite information systems are being included in many university and college curricula throughout Europe,” says Dr Speedy. “The potential for engineering applications needs further encouragement and can only be achieved through the public-private collaboration seen in this prize.”

About the prize

The prize, an initiative of the GSA and the European Environment Agency, is open to students and young farmers across Europe and Africa with innovative ideas for using satellite technology to improve agricultural production, efficiency and profit, or to reduce the sector’s environmental impact.

Launched in 2012, the Farming by Satellite Prize, is held every two years.

The award ceremony is scheduled for 14:00 on Monday, 23 January 2017 at the European Commission’s Stand (number 3.2) in Messe Berlin. The announcement is being held as part of the GSA’s participation in International Green Week, a global tradeshow for the food, agriculture and gardening industries. Feel free to join the competitors.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Professor Vidal Ashkenazi, who in 2003 helped lay the groundwork for what would become Galileo, was recently named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his service to science.

Professor Vidal Ashkenazi was recently named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his service to science. The news, which was published in the recent New Year’s Honours List, is in recognition of his commitment to developing the geodetic aspects of positioning by using satellites – a commitment that goes back to the field’s earliest days.

In 1976, the US National Geodetic Survey (NGS) invited Prof. Ashkenazi to assist with the development of geodetic coordinate systems, work that resulted in a framework that is still used by satellite navigation and mapping systems today. Building from this experience, he founded Nottingham Scientific Ltd, one of the leading space geodesy research institutes in Europe and where he currently serves as Chief Executive Officer. It was here that he began to focus on the power of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), noting that although GPS was designed as a military system, its main advantage to the USA was in fact economic.

In 2003 he went to Brussels to share these findings with the Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (ITRE) Committee of the European Parliament. Here he stressed the economic benefits that GNSS could bring to Europe and the need for the EU to build its own satellite navigation system – thus laying the groundwork for what would become Galileo.

On 15 December 2016, just weeks before receiving the OBE honour, he saw his idea became a reality. With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, for the first time ever, users around the world are being guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation.

As Prof. Ashkenazi predicted, with Galileo, Europe is poised to promote substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive many advancements, particularly in the transport sector. The additional accuracy and availability provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

“Twenty years ago, Professor Ashkenazi recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite system,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “Thanks to his foresight and ongoing work with the European Union, today the EU has successfully launched and implemented the world’s first GNSS programme completely under civil control. I am very pleased to see that we live in a society that values professional excellence and vision. On behalf of everyone at the GSA, I congratulate Professor Ashkenazi on this well-deserved award.

“I am absolutely delighted to have been awarded an OBE,” adds Prof. Ashkenazi. “But more importantly, this award recognises the contribution of scientists and technologists to society in terms of satellite positioning, navigation and timing.”

Prof. Ashkenazi will soon be invited to London to receive his OBE from a member of the British Royal Family.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Professor Vidal Ashkenazi, who in 2003 helped lay the groundwork for what would become Galileo, was recently named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his service to science.

Professor Vidal Ashkenazi was recently named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his service to science. The news, which was published in the recent New Year’s Honours List, is in recognition of his commitment to developing the geodetic aspects of positioning by using satellites – a commitment that goes back to the field’s earliest days.

In 1976, the US National Geodetic Survey (NGS) invited Prof. Ashkenazi to assist with the development of geodetic coordinate systems, work that resulted in a framework that is still used by satellite navigation and mapping systems today. Building from this experience, he founded Nottingham Scientific Ltd, one of the leading space geodesy research institutes in Europe and where he currently serves as Chief Executive Officer. It was here that he began to focus on the power of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), noting that although GPS was designed as a military system, its main advantage to the USA was in fact economic.

In 2003 he went to Brussels to share these findings with the Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (ITRE) Committee of the European Parliament. Here he stressed the economic benefits that GNSS could bring to Europe and the need for the EU to build its own satellite navigation system – thus laying the groundwork for what would become Galileo.

On 15 December 2016, just weeks before receiving the OBE honour, he saw his idea became a reality. With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, for the first time ever, users around the world are being guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation.

As Prof. Ashkenazi predicted, with Galileo, Europe is poised to promote substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive many advancements, particularly in the transport sector. The additional accuracy and availability provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

“Twenty years ago, Professor Ashkenazi recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite system,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “Thanks to his foresight and ongoing work with the European Union, today the EU has successfully launched and implemented the world’s first GNSS programme completely under civil control. I am very pleased to see that we live in a society that values professional excellence and vision. On behalf of everyone at the GSA, I congratulate Professor Ashkenazi on this well-deserved award.

“I am absolutely delighted to have been awarded an OBE,” adds Prof. Ashkenazi. “But more importantly, this award recognises the contribution of scientists and technologists to society in terms of satellite positioning, navigation and timing.”

Prof. Ashkenazi will soon be invited to London to receive his OBE from a member of the British Royal Family.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With last month’s Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, anyone with a mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as a smartphone or a vehicle navigation device, can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation.

“Clearly, the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is big news for chipset, receiver and device manufacturers and application developers operating in the GNSS market, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “Today, we invite the industry to showcase their Galileo-enabled products to the media and to users.”

Market ready

The strong cooperation between the European GNSS Agency (GSA) and receiver industry has made it possible for Galileo to arrive onto the market even before the declaration of Initial Services. For example, Broadcom and Qualcomm, the market leaders for global smartphone chips supply, had already built Galileo into their products. As a result, many smartphones coming onto the market this year will arrive Galileo-ready.
“Accurate, reliable and rapid position location is an important part of the mobile experience,” says Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. Senior Vice President Product Management Alex Katouzian. “Qualcomm Technologies is helping to improve consumers’ experiences with location-based services by adding Galileo support to our IZat location platform and deploying it broadly across our modem and application processor portfolios.”
Over the course of the past several years and in anticipation of Galileo Initial Services, such key chipset manufacturers as Intel, Mediatek, u-blox and STM have all announced Galileo-ready chips. Overall, more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market produce Galileo-ready chips.

Road and surveying now, aviation and maritime soon

Currently, most Galileo-enabled chipsets and receivers are found in the automotive, consumer, agriculture and surveying sectors. For example, in the road sector, satellites help with vehicle navigation and fleet management. “Today, Galileo ensures the accuracy of the satellite signals these services depend on and, in the near future, Galileo will help autonomous driving and connected vehicles,” says GSA Head of Market Development Gian Gherardo Calini.
In the high-precision market, all leading receiver developers have integrated Galileo into their products, including Trimble, Leica Geosystems, Javad, TopCon, Septentrio and NovAtel. “The availability of the first three Galileo services validates our confidence that Europe is ready to join the world’s operators of global navigation satellite systems,” says NovAtel President and CEO Michael Ritter. “NovAtel’s high precision GNSS receivers, antennas and certified ground-reference station receivers have supported Galileo signals in anticipation of the complete constellation.”
Galileo will soon be providing support to location based operations in all other market segments. For example, receivers for Unmanned Autonomous Systems (UAS) are already capable of tracking the Galileo signal. On the maritime side, Galileo is helping to ensure safer navigation on the water, and has been recognised by the International Maritime Organisation as part of its Worldwide Radio Navigation System.
“The GSA is excited to continue its close cooperation with chipset and receiver manufacturers in the coming years as we further optimise Galileo performance and maximise user benefits,” says Calini. Along these lines, the 2017 Annual Receiver Workshop is scheduled for March 21 at GSA headquarters in Prague. This regular event is an excellent opportunity for the GNSS receiver community to learn the latest about the Galileo programme.

First Galileo smartphones

With Galileo, the positioning information provided by smartphones is more accurate and reliable – particularly in urban environments where narrow streets and tall buildings often block satellite signals and limit the usefulness of many mobile services. One of the first device manufacturers to take advantage of the increased accuracy and reliability that Galileo provides is BQ, the Spanish technology company that launched the first European-designed Galileo smartphone to hit the market.
“It is a great privilege for BQ to be one of the first in the world to offer Galileo in our devices,” says BQ Assistant General Manager Rodrigo del Prado. “This is a clear demonstration of Europe’s robust technological capabilities.”
Other smartphone manufacturers are also preparing to activate Galileo capability on their devices. In fact, just prior to the Declaration of Initial Services, the Huawei Mate 9 added Galileo support to the phone’s technical specifications.

Up-to-date info on using Galileo

To keep users up-to-date with detailed information on all available Galileo-compatible products, the GSA launched www.useGalileo.eu. From this dedicated website users can easily browse the list of currently available Galileo products and devices and search for devices based on user segment. 
Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With last month’s Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, anyone with a mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as a smartphone or a vehicle navigation device, can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation.

“Clearly, the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is big news for chipset, receiver and device manufacturers and application developers operating in the GNSS market, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “Today, we invite the industry to showcase their Galileo-enabled products to the media and to users.”

Market ready

The strong cooperation between the European GNSS Agency (GSA) and receiver industry has made it possible for Galileo to arrive onto the market even before the declaration of Initial Services. For example, Broadcom and Qualcomm, the market leaders for global smartphone chips supply, had already built Galileo into their products. As a result, many smartphones coming onto the market this year will arrive Galileo-ready.
“Accurate, reliable and rapid position location is an important part of the mobile experience,” says Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. Senior Vice President Product Management Alex Katouzian. “Qualcomm Technologies is helping to improve consumers’ experiences with location-based services by adding Galileo support to our IZat location platform and deploying it broadly across our modem and application processor portfolios.”
Over the course of the past several years and in anticipation of Galileo Initial Services, such key chipset manufacturers as Intel, Mediatek, u-blox and STM have all announced Galileo-ready chips. Overall, more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market produce Galileo-ready chips.

Road and surveying now, aviation and maritime soon

Currently, most Galileo-enabled chipsets and receivers are found in the automotive, consumer, agriculture and surveying sectors. For example, in the road sector, satellites help with vehicle navigation and fleet management. “Today, Galileo ensures the accuracy of the satellite signals these services depend on and, in the near future, Galileo will help autonomous driving and connected vehicles,” says GSA Head of Market Development Gian Gherardo Calini.
In the high-precision market, all leading receiver developers have integrated Galileo into their products, including Trimble, Leica Geosystems, Javad, TopCon, Septentrio and NovAtel. “The availability of the first three Galileo services validates our confidence that Europe is ready to join the world’s operators of global navigation satellite systems,” says NovAtel President and CEO Michael Ritter. “NovAtel’s high precision GNSS receivers, antennas and certified ground-reference station receivers have supported Galileo signals in anticipation of the complete constellation.”
Galileo will soon be providing support to location based operations in all other market segments. For example, receivers for Unmanned Autonomous Systems (UAS) are already capable of tracking the Galileo signal. On the maritime side, Galileo is helping to ensure safer navigation on the water, and has been recognised by the International Maritime Organisation as part of its Worldwide Radio Navigation System.
“The GSA is excited to continue its close cooperation with chipset and receiver manufacturers in the coming years as we further optimise Galileo performance and maximise user benefits,” says Calini. Along these lines, the 2017 Annual Receiver Workshop is scheduled for March 21 at GSA headquarters in Prague. This regular event is an excellent opportunity for the GNSS receiver community to learn the latest about the Galileo programme.

First Galileo smartphones

With Galileo, the positioning information provided by smartphones is more accurate and reliable – particularly in urban environments where narrow streets and tall buildings often block satellite signals and limit the usefulness of many mobile services. One of the first device manufacturers to take advantage of the increased accuracy and reliability that Galileo provides is BQ, the Spanish technology company that launched the first European-designed Galileo smartphone to hit the market.
“It is a great privilege for BQ to be one of the first in the world to offer Galileo in our devices,” says BQ Assistant General Manager Rodrigo del Prado. “This is a clear demonstration of Europe’s robust technological capabilities.”
Other smartphone manufacturers are also preparing to activate Galileo capability on their devices. In fact, just prior to the Declaration of Initial Services, the Huawei Mate 9 added Galileo support to the phone’s technical specifications.

Up-to-date info on using Galileo

To keep users up-to-date with detailed information on all available Galileo-compatible products, the GSA launched www.useGalileo.eu. From this dedicated website users can easily browse the list of currently available Galileo products and devices and search for devices based on user segment. 
Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA), together with EUROCONTROL, recently held a two-day meeting at its Prague headquarters. More than 120 people participated, including national air navigation service providers and authorities, civil and military aircraft operators, pilots, international aviation associations, equipment manufacturers and rotorcraft operators. 

“The European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) was originally built for the aviation sector, and the significant interest in this meeting is evidence of how the value of EGNOS is strongly recognised by the entire aviation community,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides.
Whereas the first day served as an opportunity for the many GSA-funded aviation projects to gather together and share their experiences in regards to EGNOS adoption, the second day was dedicated to the 11th meeting of the Area Navigation (RNAV) Approach implementation Support Group (RAiSG). On its agenda were such aviation-critical topics as implementation updates, status of the EGNOS service provision, SBAS CAT I operational safety assessment guidance, and the latest developments coming from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). RAiSG is charged with coordinating the activities necessary for the implementation of RNAV approach procedures.
“The GSA supports the implementation of EGNOS not just through funding, but also by providing technical assistance, support and close cooperation with such aviation user associations as the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) and the European Regions Airline Association (ERA), along with overseeing the development of the GNSS user group,” explains GSA Market Development Officer Carmen Aguilera.

The EGNOS effect
During the first day, projects funded under the first and second calls of the EGNOS adoption aviation grant programme had an opportunity to present and discuss the challenges, successes, lessons learnt and best practices experienced by their projects. Presenters included operators, airport managers, air navigation service providers (ANSPs) and national civil aviation authorities.
Highlights included discussions on:

• implementation of localiser performance with vertical guidance (LPV) capable systems used by regional airlines/operators
• implementation of point in space (PinS) LPV for helicopter life-critical operations in Italy’s Piedmont region
• large-scale implementation of LPV procedures capable of improving accessibility and enhancing performance in numerous European countries.

“With these projects we are creating a snowball effect for the adoption of EGNOS,” says Aguilera. “For example, the development of supplemental-type certificates during the first call allowed other projects to begin creating retrofit solutions for over 260 aircraft.”
According to Aguilera, one of the most popular topics for discussion was rotorcraft operations using EGNOS. “By bringing together all relevant players in one room, we are helping to foster adoption in this important sector and harmonising EGNOS-based rotorcraft operations in Europe,” she says.
“This event was a resounding success because it provided a unique opportunity for aviation stakeholders to come together and learn from each other’s experiences in regards to implementing projects that benefit the aviation community as a whole,” adds EUROCONTROL Director of Pan-European Sky Adriaan Heerbaart. 

A partnership for aviation
The workshop was organised within the context of the Framework Partnership Agreement between EUROCONTROL and the GSA. Since 2014, the two organisations have worked together to develop advanced systems and operations for aviation based on space technology. In particular, they are focused on improving airport accessibility, aviation efficiency and air traffic management capacity, while also reducing safety risks and costs.
Signed in 2015, the Framework Partnership Agreement covers a 7-year period and focuses on a range of activities, including:

• aviation user requirements for EGNOS and Galileo
• supporting the use of European GNSS services in the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) area
• coordinating research and development (R&D) within the aviation sector;
• standardising aviation regulations
• monitoring aviation-specific GNSS performance
• supporting the uptake of European GNSS for aviation at the international level

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In 2015, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) launched Fundamental Elements, an R&D funding mechanism supporting the development of global navigation satellite system-(GNSS) enabled chipsets, receivers and antennas. The mechanism aims to support the development of innovative chipset and receiver technology that industry would not invest in on its own initiative, thus accelerating their integration of Galileo and EGNOS into market-ready devices. The end goal is to develop close-to-market chipsets, receivers and antennas in targeted markets. The first project to come out Fundamental Elements is dedicated to the automotive segment.      

With connected vehicles and autonomous driving vehicles being the most relevant trend in the automotive sector – both now and for the foreseeable future – there is a clear need to provide accurate and reliable positioning information for safety-critical applications. Within the context of road transportation, safety-critical applications are defined as those that possess the potential to, directly or indirectly, avoid causing harm to humans, destroying the vehicle or damaging external property or the environment. Autonomous driving, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and dangerous goods transportation are all included in this group.

Also read: Driving towards the autonomous vehicle

The traditional way of providing the required accurate and reliable positioning information is to make use of multiple sources of sensor data. The problem with this approach is that it requires the use of such sophisticated equipment as radar/lidar-based sensor and cameras, which tend to be expensive. Furthermore, as this equipment is not specifically designed for use with automotive consumer applications, it is not fully suitable to provide reliable positioning information.

A dedicated solution
The European Safety Critical Applications Positioning Engine (ESCAPE) project aims to overcome these multiple challenges by developing a dedicated, reliable and accurate engine, specifically designed for automotive safety-critical applications. The ESCAPE project is funded under the Fundamental Elements Development of E-GNSS engine for safety-critical multi-applications in road transport call.

Read this: Satellite navigation at core of future connected car systems

The project consortium includes stakeholders from across the automotive value chain, including Renault, FICOSA, GMV and ST. Under the ESCAPE umbrella, these companies are pooling their complementary competences and pre-existing knowledge to develop an innovative positioning engine that exploits European GNSS (E-GNSS) differentiators and will be available for future commercialisation. Ultimately, the project will develop the first multi-constellation Galileo chipset receiver with multi-frequency capability specifically adapted to road applications – and in particular autonomous vehicles. 

Re-defining the state of the art
According to project researchers, the ESCAPE engine will surpass current definitions of ‘state of the art’. “For the first time, an E-GNSS engine will provide an integrity-focused, safety-critical positioning system that fully integrates GNSS, on-board sensors, cameras and maps,” says GSA Head of Market Development Gian Gherardo Calini. The engine’s core features include:

• a GNSS/Galileo multi-constellation, multi-frequency chipset for road applications
• use of the precise point positioning (PPP) service
• hybridisation of cameras, maps, vehicle sensors and GNSS integrated into a tight coupling filter
• provision of an integrity layer to the exploited technologies
• optional capability to implement navigation message authentication

Over the course of three years, these technologies will be integrated into the resulting ESCAPE engine. At that point, the engine will be close to commercialisation, with rapid market uptake expected.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In 2015, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) launched Fundamental Elements, an R&D funding mechanism supporting the development of global navigation satellite system-(GNSS) enabled chipsets, receivers and antennas. The mechanism aims to support the development of innovative chipset and receiver technology that industry would not invest in on its own initiative, thus accelerating their integration of Galileo and EGNOS into market-ready devices. The end goal is to develop close-to-market chipsets, receivers and antennas in targeted markets. The first project to come out Fundamental Elements is dedicated to the automotive segment.      

With connected vehicles and autonomous driving vehicles being the most relevant trend in the automotive sector – both now and for the foreseeable future – there is a clear need to provide accurate and reliable positioning information for safety-critical applications. Within the context of road transportation, safety-critical applications are defined as those that possess the potential to, directly or indirectly, avoid causing harm to humans, destroying the vehicle or damaging external property or the environment. Autonomous driving, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and dangerous goods transportation are all included in this group.

Also read: Driving towards the autonomous vehicle

The traditional way of providing the required accurate and reliable positioning information is to make use of multiple sources of sensor data. The problem with this approach is that it requires the use of such sophisticated equipment as radar/lidar-based sensor and cameras, which tend to be expensive. Furthermore, as this equipment is not specifically designed for use with automotive consumer applications, it is not fully suitable to provide reliable positioning information.

A dedicated solution
The European Safety Critical Applications Positioning Engine (ESCAPE) project aims to overcome these multiple challenges by developing a dedicated, reliable and accurate engine, specifically designed for automotive safety-critical applications. The ESCAPE project is funded under the Fundamental Elements Development of E-GNSS engine for safety-critical multi-applications in road transport call.

Read this: Satellite navigation at core of future connected car systems

The project consortium includes stakeholders from across the automotive value chain, including Renault, FICOSA, GMV and ST. Under the ESCAPE umbrella, these companies are pooling their complementary competences and pre-existing knowledge to develop an innovative positioning engine that exploits European GNSS (E-GNSS) differentiators and will be available for future commercialisation. Ultimately, the project will develop the first multi-constellation Galileo chipset receiver with multi-frequency capability specifically adapted to road applications – and in particular autonomous vehicles. 

Re-defining the state of the art
According to project researchers, the ESCAPE engine will surpass current definitions of ‘state of the art’. “For the first time, an E-GNSS engine will provide an integrity-focused, safety-critical positioning system that fully integrates GNSS, on-board sensors, cameras and maps,” says GSA Head of Market Development Gian Gherardo Calini. The engine’s core features include:

• a GNSS/Galileo multi-constellation, multi-frequency chipset for road applications
• use of the precise point positioning (PPP) service
• hybridisation of cameras, maps, vehicle sensors and GNSS integrated into a tight coupling filter
• provision of an integrity layer to the exploited technologies
• optional capability to implement navigation message authentication

Over the course of three years, these technologies will be integrated into the resulting ESCAPE engine. At that point, the engine will be close to commercialisation, with rapid market uptake expected.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, Galileo officially moves from a testing phase to the provision of live services. For the first time ever, users around the world can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation. Starting now, any mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo.

“Today we are really making history,” says European Commission Vice President responsible for the Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. “With Galileo, Europe gains its own satellite navigation system that will improve a range of everyday services for our citizens and strengthens Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

“Galileo is now alive and kicking,” says Elzbieta Bienkowska European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. “Galileo Initial Services is the result of a concerted effort to design and build the most accurate navigation system in the world. It demonstrates the technological excellence of Europe and its commitment to delivering space-based services and applications and, as such, represents a special achievement of a united Europe.”

GSA in the driver’s seat

With the launch of Initial Services, Galileo officially transitions from a system in testing to a system in service. As Europe’s link between space technology and user needs, the GSA has been delegated the responsibility for the Galileo service provision by the European Commission. As of 1 January 2017, the GSA will have the core task of ensuring a return on investment from Galileo in the form of clear, across-the-board services and applications for end users.

 

“The GSA is now putting into practice all that it has been preparing for,” adds GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The centre of gravity for the Galileo programme is now the user and, meaning European citizens, businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from the many innovative opportunities created by European GNSS.”

In overseeing the Galileo service provision, the GSA will:

• oversee the operation of such key service facilities as the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) in France and the United Kingdom, the GSC in Spain and the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in the Netherlands;
• maximise adoption across user market segments and fostering EU economic and industrial benefits;
• make the Public Regulated Service (PRS) the service of choice for all authorised users, providing the same high level of availability and robustness that is otherwise only available from military-based GNSS systems (GPS, GLONASS, Beidou);
• position Galileo as the first constellation of choice in search and rescue beacons.

What Galileo Initial Services means for you

With Galileo Initial Services, users benefit from a more accurate navigation and positioning that saves time and allows one to travel safer. For example, thanks to Galileo’s Search and Rescue service, locating distress beacons is substantially improved. As a result, after someone activates a distress beacon, the time to find them, whether they are lost at sea or in the mountains, is reduced from up to three hours to just ten minutes. Additionally, the distress beacon’s location can be more accurately determined, to within 5km – a substantial improvement on the current 10km.

Europe will also enjoy substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive world economic growth, particularly in high-tech industries. Experts predict that the global satellite navigation market will itself grow by more than 18% up until 2019. The additional resiliency provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

Galileo compatible products available today

The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is also excellent news for chipset and receiver manufacturers and application developers, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals.
 
Today, 17 companies, representing more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market, produce Galileo-ready chips. These include such key chipset manufacturers as u-blox, Broadcom, Mediatek, Intel and Qualcomm. There are also a number of Galileo-ready devices on the market, including smartphones and in-vehicle navigation systems.

You can find up-to-date information on all available Galileo compatible products at www.useGalileo.eu

Understanding Initial Services

Galileo is Europe’s Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS). The Declaration of Initial Services – a combined effort of the European Commission, European GNSS Agency (GSA), and European Space Agency (ESA) – is the first step towards reaching full operational capability.

The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SaR). All of these services are available free of charge.

Galileo Initial Services are fully interoperable with GPS – a combination that provides users with considerable improvements, with stronger performance and service levels. With Galileo satellites working in conjunction with GPS, there are more satellites available, meaning more accurate and reliable positioning for end users. In particular, navigation in cities, where satellite signals can often be blocked by tall buildings, benefit from the increased positioning accuracy this provides.
History in the making

Galileo is unique in that it is the only civil-based GNSS initiative. Whereas the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS, and China’s Beidou systems – among others – are all operated by their respective militaries, Europe’s Galileo programme stands alone as the world’s only option for GNSS under civil control. This is an important distinction, especially as the world’s dependence on GNSS continues to increase. From individuals to private businesses, the public sector and academia, as more and more services become dependent on the availability of an accurate GNSS signal, the implications of a possible signal failure becomes increasingly dangerous.

With some foresight, 20 years ago the EU recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite navigation system. In the years since, the EU has successfully launched and implemented EGNOS and, today, Galileo Initial Services.

Initial Services is the first step toward full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete by 2020. Between the declaration of Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available.

Learn more

The GSA’s Galileo Initial Services page

The European GNSS Service Centre is the place to go for all things related to developing Galileo-capable products and services. 

 

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, Galileo officially moves from a testing phase to the provision of live services. For the first time ever, users around the world can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation. Starting now, any mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo.

“Today we are really making history,” says European Commission Vice President responsible for the Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. “With Galileo, Europe gains its own satellite navigation system that will improve a range of everyday services for our citizens and strengthens Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

“Galileo is now alive and kicking,” says Elzbieta Bienkowska European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. “Galileo Initial Services is the result of a concerted effort to design and build the most accurate navigation system in the world. It demonstrates the technological excellence of Europe and its commitment to delivering space-based services and applications and, as such, represents a special achievement of a united Europe.”

GSA in the driver’s seat

With the launch of Initial Services, Galileo officially transitions from a system in testing to a system in service. As Europe’s link between space technology and user needs, the GSA has been delegated the responsibility for the Galileo service provision by the European Commission. As of 1 January 2017, the GSA will have the core task of ensuring a return on investment from Galileo in the form of clear, across-the-board services and applications for end users.

Watch this: Galileo goes live, Initial Services declaration

“The GSA is now putting into practice all that it has been preparing for,” adds GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The centre of gravity for the Galileo programme is now the user and, meaning European citizens, businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from the many innovative opportunities created by European GNSS.”

In overseeing the Galileo service provision, the GSA will:

• oversee the operation of such key service facilities as the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) in France and the United Kingdom, the GSC in Spain and the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in the Netherlands;
• maximise adoption across user market segments and fostering EU economic and industrial benefits;
• make the Public Regulated Service (PRS) the service of choice for all authorised users, providing the same high level of availability and robustness that is otherwise only available from military-based GNSS systems (GPS, GLONASS, Beidou);
• position Galileo as the first constellation of choice in search and rescue beacons.

What Galileo Initial Services means for you

With Galileo Initial Services, users benefit from a more accurate navigation and positioning that saves time and allows one to travel safer. For example, thanks to Galileo’s Search and Rescue service, locating distress beacons is substantially improved. As a result, after someone activates a distress beacon, the time to find them, whether they are lost at sea or in the mountains, is reduced from up to three hours to just ten minutes. Additionally, the distress beacon’s location can be more accurately determined, to within 5km – a substantial improvement on the current 10km.

Europe will also enjoy substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive world economic growth, particularly in high-tech industries. Experts predict that the global satellite navigation market will itself grow by more than 18% up until 2019. The additional resiliency provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

Galileo compatible products available today

The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is also excellent news for chipset and receiver manufacturers and application developers, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals.
 
Today, 17 companies, representing more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market, produce Galileo-ready chips. These include such key chipset manufacturers as u-blox, Broadcom, Mediatek, Intel and Qualcomm. There are also a number of Galileo-ready devices on the market, including smartphones and in-vehicle navigation systems.

You can find up-to-date information on all available Galileo compatible products at www.useGalileo.eu

Understanding Initial Services

Galileo is Europe’s Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS). The Declaration of Initial Services – a combined effort of the European Commission, European GNSS Agency (GSA), and European Space Agency (ESA) – is the first step towards reaching full operational capability.

The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SaR). All of these services are available free of charge.

Galileo Initial Services are fully interoperable with GPS – a combination that provides users with considerable improvements, with stronger performance and service levels. With Galileo satellites working in conjunction with GPS, there are more satellites available, meaning more accurate and reliable positioning for end users. In particular, navigation in cities, where satellite signals can often be blocked by tall buildings, benefit from the increased positioning accuracy this provides.
History in the making

Galileo is unique in that it is the only civil-based GNSS initiative. Whereas the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS, and China’s Beidou systems – among others – are all operated by their respective militaries, Europe’s Galileo programme stands alone as the world’s only option for GNSS under civil control. This is an important distinction, especially as the world’s dependence on GNSS continues to increase. From individuals to private businesses, the public sector and academia, as more and more services become dependent on the availability of an accurate GNSS signal, the implications of a possible signal failure becomes increasingly dangerous.

With some foresight, 20 years ago the EU recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite navigation system. In the years since, the EU has successfully launched and implemented EGNOS and, today, Galileo Initial Services.

Initial Services is the first step toward full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete by 2020. Between the declaration of Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available.

Learn more

The GSA’s Galileo Initial Services pagee

The European GNSS Service Centre is the place to go for all things related to developing Galileo-capable products and services. 

GSA Ready for Initial Services

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, Galileo officially moves from a testing phase to the provision of live services. For the first time ever, users around the world can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation. Starting now, any mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo.

“Today we are really making history,” says European Commission Vice President responsible for the Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. “With Galileo, Europe gains its own satellite navigation system that will improve a range of everyday services for our citizens and strengthens Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

“Galileo is now alive and kicking,” says Elzbieta Bienkowska European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. “Galileo Initial Services is the result of a concerted effort to design and build the most accurate navigation system in the world. It demonstrates the technological excellence of Europe and its commitment to delivering space-based services and applications and, as such, represents a special achievement of a united Europe.”

GSA in the driver’s seat

With the launch of Initial Services, Galileo officially transitions from a system in testing to a system in service. As Europe’s link between space technology and user needs, the GSA has been delegated the responsibility for the Galileo service provision by the European Commission. As of 1 January 2017, the GSA will have the core task of ensuring a return on investment from Galileo in the form of clear, across-the-board services and applications for end users.

Watch this: Galileo goes live, Initial Services declaration

“The GSA is now putting into practice all that it has been preparing for,” adds GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The centre of gravity for the Galileo programme is now the user and, meaning European citizens, businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from the many innovative opportunities created by European GNSS.”

In overseeing the Galileo service provision, the GSA will:

• oversee the operation of such key service facilities as the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) in France and the United Kingdom, the GSC in Spain and the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in the Netherlands;
• maximise adoption across user market segments and fostering EU economic and industrial benefits;
• make the Public Regulated Service (PRS) the service of choice for all authorised users, providing the same high level of availability and robustness that is otherwise only available from military-based GNSS systems (GPS, GLONASS, Beidou);
• position Galileo as the first constellation of choice in search and rescue beacons.

What Galileo Initial Services means for you

With Galileo Initial Services, users benefit from a more accurate navigation and positioning that saves time and allows one to travel safer. For example, thanks to Galileo’s Search and Rescue service, locating distress beacons is substantially improved. As a result, after someone activates a distress beacon, the time to find them, whether they are lost at sea or in the mountains, is reduced from up to three hours to just ten minutes. Additionally, the distress beacon’s location can be more accurately determined, to within 5km – a substantial improvement on the current 10km.

Europe will also enjoy substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive world economic growth, particularly in high-tech industries. Experts predict that the global satellite navigation market will itself grow by more than 18% up until 2019. The additional resiliency provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

Galileo compatible products available today

The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is also excellent news for chipset and receiver manufacturers and application developers, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals.
 
Today, 17 companies, representing more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market, produce Galileo-ready chips. These include such key chipset manufacturers as u-blox, Broadcom, Mediatek, Intel and Qualcomm. There are also a number of Galileo-ready devices on the market, including smartphones and in-vehicle navigation systems.

You can find up-to-date information on all available Galileo compatible products at www.useGalileo.eu

Understanding Initial Services

Galileo is Europe’s Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS). The Declaration of Initial Services – a combined effort of the European Commission, European GNSS Agency (GSA), and European Space Agency (ESA) – is the first step towards reaching full operational capability.

The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SaR). All of these services are available free of charge.

Galileo Initial Services are fully interoperable with GPS – a combination that provides users with considerable improvements, with stronger performance and service levels. With Galileo satellites working in conjunction with GPS, there are more satellites available, meaning more accurate and reliable positioning for end users. In particular, navigation in cities, where satellite signals can often be blocked by tall buildings, benefit from the increased positioning accuracy this provides.
History in the making

Galileo is unique in that it is the only civil-based GNSS initiative. Whereas the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS, and China’s Beidou systems – among others – are all operated by their respective militaries, Europe’s Galileo programme stands alone as the world’s only option for GNSS under civil control. This is an important distinction, especially as the world’s dependence on GNSS continues to increase. From individuals to private businesses, the public sector and academia, as more and more services become dependent on the availability of an accurate GNSS signal, the implications of a possible signal failure becomes increasingly dangerous.

With some foresight, 20 years ago the EU recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite navigation system. In the years since, the EU has successfully launched and implemented EGNOS and, today, Galileo Initial Services.

Initial Services is the first step toward full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete by 2020. Between the declaration of Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available.

Learn more

The GSA’s Galileo Initial Services pagee

The European GNSS Service Centre is the place to go for all things related to developing Galileo-capable products and services. 

GSA Ready for Initial Services

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, Galileo officially moves from a testing phase to the provision of live services. For the first time ever, users around the world can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation. Starting now, any mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo.

“Today we are really making history,” says European Commission Vice President responsible for the Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. “With Galileo, Europe gains its own satellite navigation system that will improve a range of everyday services for our citizens and strengthens Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

“Galileo is now alive and kicking,” says Elzbieta Bienkowska European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. “Galileo Initial Services is the result of a concerted effort to design and build the most accurate navigation system in the world. It demonstrates the technological excellence of Europe and its commitment to delivering space-based services and applications and, as such, represents a special achievement of a united Europe.”

GSA in the driver’s seat

With the launch of Initial Services, Galileo officially transitions from a system in testing to a system in service. As Europe’s link between space technology and user needs, the GSA has been delegated the responsibility for the Galileo service provision by the European Commission. As of 1 January 2017, the GSA will have the core task of ensuring a return on investment from Galileo in the form of clear, across-the-board services and applications for end users.

 

“The GSA is now putting into practice all that it has been preparing for,” adds GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The centre of gravity for the Galileo programme is now the user and, meaning European citizens, businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from the many innovative opportunities created by European GNSS.”

In overseeing the Galileo service provision, the GSA will:

• oversee the operation of such key service facilities as the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) in France and the United Kingdom, the GSC in Spain and the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in the Netherlands;
• maximise adoption across user market segments and fostering EU economic and industrial benefits;
• make the Public Regulated Service (PRS) the service of choice for all authorised users, providing the same high level of availability and robustness that is otherwise only available from military-based GNSS systems (GPS, GLONASS, Beidou);
• position Galileo as the first constellation of choice in search and rescue beacons.

What Galileo Initial Services means for you

With Galileo Initial Services, users benefit from a more accurate navigation and positioning that saves time and allows one to travel safer. For example, thanks to Galileo’s Search and Rescue service, locating distress beacons is substantially improved. As a result, after someone activates a distress beacon, the time to find them, whether they are lost at sea or in the mountains, is reduced from up to three hours to just ten minutes. Additionally, the distress beacon’s location can be more accurately determined, to within 5km – a substantial improvement on the current 10km.

Europe will also enjoy substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive world economic growth, particularly in high-tech industries. Experts predict that the global satellite navigation market will itself grow by more than 18% up until 2019. The additional resiliency provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

Galileo compatible products available today

The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is also excellent news for chipset and receiver manufacturers and application developers, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals.
 
Today, 17 companies, representing more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market, produce Galileo-ready chips. These include such key chipset manufacturers as u-blox, Broadcom, Mediatek, Intel and Qualcomm. There are also a number of Galileo-ready devices on the market, including smartphones and in-vehicle navigation systems.

You can find up-to-date information on all available Galileo compatible products at www.useGalileo.eu

Understanding Initial Services

Galileo is Europe’s Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS). The Declaration of Initial Services – a combined effort of the European Commission, European GNSS Agency (GSA), and European Space Agency (ESA) – is the first step towards reaching full operational capability.

The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SaR). All of these services are available free of charge.

Galileo Initial Services are fully interoperable with GPS – a combination that provides users with considerable improvements, with stronger performance and service levels. With Galileo satellites working in conjunction with GPS, there are more satellites available, meaning more accurate and reliable positioning for end users. In particular, navigation in cities, where satellite signals can often be blocked by tall buildings, benefit from the increased positioning accuracy this provides.
History in the making

Galileo is unique in that it is the only civil-based GNSS initiative. Whereas the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS, and China’s Beidou systems – among others – are all operated by their respective militaries, Europe’s Galileo programme stands alone as the world’s only option for GNSS under civil control. This is an important distinction, especially as the world’s dependence on GNSS continues to increase. From individuals to private businesses, the public sector and academia, as more and more services become dependent on the availability of an accurate GNSS signal, the implications of a possible signal failure becomes increasingly dangerous.

With some foresight, 20 years ago the EU recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite navigation system. In the years since, the EU has successfully launched and implemented EGNOS and, today, Galileo Initial Services.

Initial Services is the first step toward full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete by 2020. Between the declaration of Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available.

Learn more

The GSA’s Galileo Initial Services page

The European GNSS Service Centre is the place to go for all things related to developing Galileo-capable products and services. 

 

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, Galileo officially moves from a testing phase to the provision of live services. For the first time ever, users around the world can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation. Starting now, any mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo.

“Today we are really making history,” says European Commission Vice President responsible for the Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. “With Galileo, Europe gains its own satellite navigation system that will improve a range of everyday services for our citizens and strengthens Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

“Galileo is now alive and kicking,” says Elzbieta Bienkowska European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. “Galileo Initial Services is the result of a concerted effort to design and build the most accurate navigation system in the world. It demonstrates the technological excellence of Europe and its commitment to delivering space-based services and applications and, as such, represents a special achievement of a united Europe.”

GSA in the driver’s seat

With the launch of Initial Services, Galileo officially transitions from a system in testing to a system in service. As Europe’s link between space technology and user needs, the GSA has been delegated the responsibility for the Galileo service provision by the European Commission. As of 1 January 2017, the GSA will have the core task of ensuring a return on investment from Galileo in the form of clear, across-the-board services and applications for end users.

 

“The GSA is now putting into practice all that it has been preparing for,” adds GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The centre of gravity for the Galileo programme is now the user and, meaning European citizens, businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from the many innovative opportunities created by European GNSS.”

In overseeing the Galileo service provision, the GSA will:

• oversee the operation of such key service facilities as the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) in France and the United Kingdom, the GSC in Spain and the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in the Netherlands;
• maximise adoption across user market segments and fostering EU economic and industrial benefits;
• make the Public Regulated Service (PRS) the service of choice for all authorised users, providing the same high level of availability and robustness that is otherwise only available from military-based GNSS systems (GPS, GLONASS, Beidou);
• position Galileo as the first constellation of choice in search and rescue beacons.

What Galileo Initial Services means for you

With Galileo Initial Services, users benefit from a more accurate navigation and positioning that saves time and allows one to travel safer. For example, thanks to Galileo’s Search and Rescue service, locating distress beacons is substantially improved. As a result, after someone activates a distress beacon, the time to find them, whether they are lost at sea or in the mountains, is reduced from up to three hours to just ten minutes. Additionally, the distress beacon’s location can be more accurately determined, to within 5km – a substantial improvement on the current 10km.

Europe will also enjoy substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive world economic growth, particularly in high-tech industries. Experts predict that the global satellite navigation market will itself grow by more than 18% up until 2019. The additional resiliency provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

Galileo compatible products available today

The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is also excellent news for chipset and receiver manufacturers and application developers, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals.
 
Today, 17 companies, representing more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market, produce Galileo-ready chips. These include such key chipset manufacturers as u-blox, Broadcom, Mediatek, Intel and Qualcomm. There are also a number of Galileo-ready devices on the market, including smartphones and in-vehicle navigation systems.

You can find up-to-date information on all available Galileo compatible products at www.useGalileo.eu

Understanding Initial Services

Galileo is Europe’s Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS). The Declaration of Initial Services – a combined effort of the European Commission, European GNSS Agency (GSA), and European Space Agency (ESA) – is the first step towards reaching full operational capability.

The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SaR). All of these services are available free of charge.

Galileo Initial Services are fully interoperable with GPS – a combination that provides users with considerable improvements, with stronger performance and service levels. With Galileo satellites working in conjunction with GPS, there are more satellites available, meaning more accurate and reliable positioning for end users. In particular, navigation in cities, where satellite signals can often be blocked by tall buildings, benefit from the increased positioning accuracy this provides.
History in the making

Galileo is unique in that it is the only civil-based GNSS initiative. Whereas the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS, and China’s Beidou systems – among others – are all operated by their respective militaries, Europe’s Galileo programme stands alone as the world’s only option for GNSS under civil control. This is an important distinction, especially as the world’s dependence on GNSS continues to increase. From individuals to private businesses, the public sector and academia, as more and more services become dependent on the availability of an accurate GNSS signal, the implications of a possible signal failure becomes increasingly dangerous.

With some foresight, 20 years ago the EU recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite navigation system. In the years since, the EU has successfully launched and implemented EGNOS and, today, Galileo Initial Services.

Initial Services is the first step toward full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete by 2020. Between the declaration of Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available.

Learn more

The GSA’s Galileo Initial Services pagee

The European GNSS Service Centre is the place to go for all things related to developing Galileo-capable products and services. 

 

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services, Galileo officially moves from a testing phase to the provision of live services. For the first time ever, users around the world can be guided using the positioning, navigation and timing information provided by Galileo’s global satellite constellation. Starting now, any mass-market device containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo.

“Today we are really making history,” says European Commission Vice President responsible for the Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. “With Galileo, Europe gains its own satellite navigation system that will improve a range of everyday services for our citizens and strengthens Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

“Galileo is now alive and kicking,” says Elzbieta Bienkowska European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. “Galileo Initial Services is the result of a concerted effort to design and build the most accurate navigation system in the world. It demonstrates the technological excellence of Europe and its commitment to delivering space-based services and applications and, as such, represents a special achievement of a united Europe.”

GSA in the driver’s seat

With the launch of Initial Services, Galileo officially transitions from a system in testing to a system in service. As Europe’s link between space technology and user needs, the GSA has been delegated the responsibility for the Galileo service provision by the European Commission. As of 1 January 2017, the GSA will have the core task of ensuring a return on investment from Galileo in the form of clear, across-the-board services and applications for end users.

 

“The GSA is now putting into practice all that it has been preparing for,” adds GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The centre of gravity for the Galileo programme is now the user and, meaning European citizens, businesses and entrepreneurs can benefit from the many innovative opportunities created by European GNSS.”

In overseeing the Galileo service provision, the GSA will:

• oversee the operation of such key service facilities as the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) in France and the United Kingdom, the GSC in Spain and the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in the Netherlands;
• maximise adoption across user market segments and fostering EU economic and industrial benefits;
• make the Public Regulated Service (PRS) the service of choice for all authorised users, providing the same high level of availability and robustness that is otherwise only available from military-based GNSS systems (GPS, GLONASS, Beidou);
• position Galileo as the first constellation of choice in search and rescue beacons.

What Galileo Initial Services means for you

With Galileo Initial Services, users benefit from a more accurate navigation and positioning that saves time and allows one to travel safer. For example, thanks to Galileo’s Search and Rescue service, locating distress beacons is substantially improved. As a result, after someone activates a distress beacon, the time to find them, whether they are lost at sea or in the mountains, is reduced from up to three hours to just ten minutes. Additionally, the distress beacon’s location can be more accurately determined, to within 5km – a substantial improvement on the current 10km.

Europe will also enjoy substantial economic growth. This is because the use of satellite navigation has helped drive world economic growth, particularly in high-tech industries. Experts predict that the global satellite navigation market will itself grow by more than 18% up until 2019. The additional resiliency provided by Galileo is expected to enable a range of new applications and services that will benefit from increased positioning reliability, thus further driving economic growth in Europe and beyond.

Galileo compatible products available today

The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is also excellent news for chipset and receiver manufacturers and application developers, whose Galileo-enabled products can now start using Galileo signals.
 
Today, 17 companies, representing more than 95% of the global satellite navigation supply market, produce Galileo-ready chips. These include such key chipset manufacturers as u-blox, Broadcom, Mediatek, Intel and Qualcomm. There are also a number of Galileo-ready devices on the market, including smartphones and in-vehicle navigation systems.

You can find up-to-date information on all available Galileo compatible products at www.useGalileo.eu

Understanding Initial Services

Galileo is Europe’s Global Satellite Navigation System (GNSS). The Declaration of Initial Services – a combined effort of the European Commission, European GNSS Agency (GSA), and European Space Agency (ESA) – is the first step towards reaching full operational capability.

The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SaR). All of these services are available free of charge.

Galileo Initial Services are fully interoperable with GPS – a combination that provides users with considerable improvements, with stronger performance and service levels. With Galileo satellites working in conjunction with GPS, there are more satellites available, meaning more accurate and reliable positioning for end users. In particular, navigation in cities, where satellite signals can often be blocked by tall buildings, benefit from the increased positioning accuracy this provides.
History in the making

Galileo is unique in that it is the only civil-based GNSS initiative. Whereas the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS, and China’s Beidou systems – among others – are all operated by their respective militaries, Europe’s Galileo programme stands alone as the world’s only option for GNSS under civil control. This is an important distinction, especially as the world’s dependence on GNSS continues to increase. From individuals to private businesses, the public sector and academia, as more and more services become dependent on the availability of an accurate GNSS signal, the implications of a possible signal failure becomes increasingly dangerous.

With some foresight, 20 years ago the EU recognised the need for a European-controlled satellite navigation system. In the years since, the EU has successfully launched and implemented EGNOS and, today, Galileo Initial Services.

Initial Services is the first step toward full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete by 2020. Between the declaration of Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available.

Learn more

The GSA’s Galileo Initial Services pagee

The European GNSS Service Centre is the place to go for all things related to developing Galileo-capable products and services. 

 

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link the article back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Following a lengthy and complex tendering process that started in January 2015, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) awarded the Galileo Service Operator (GSOp) contract, with a value of up to EUR 1.5 billion, to Spaceopal at a special event in Brussels. Spaceopal is a joint venture between the German Aerospace Agency (DLR) and Italy’s Telespazio.

“With its emphasis on service performance, this contract will shape the future of Galileo,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “We look forward to building a strong partnership with Spaceopal as Galileo moves towards full operational capability under the responsibility of the GSA from January 2017.”

Specifically, under GSA management, the contract awarded to Spaceopal includes:

• Secure operations of Galileo from two mission control centres (GCC), located in Germany and Italy, and the European GNSS Service Centre (GSC) for user support services in Spain;
• Management of the Galileo Data Distribution Network (GDDN);
• Integrated logistics support and maintenance for the entire space and ground infrastructure;
• Monitoring of the system performance;
• Support the completion of the Galileo infrastructure and associated launches.

The GSOp contract marks the official transition of Galileo from a testing phase to a system in service. To ensure a balance between ongoing deployment needs and the priority of the service provision, the contract includes clear and tangible performance indicators (KPIs).

Spaceopal served as the contractor for Galileo operations since 2010 under the Galileo Full Operational Capability (FOC) Operations Framework Contract. “Spaceopal is committed to continuing to support the deployment and completion of the Galileo system,” says Spaceopal CEO Giuseppe Lenzo. “We are proud that the GSA has selected us to further contribute by bringing the Galileo signal in space to users and providing best-in-class satellite navigation services.” 

According to des Dorides, Galileo will now go through three key phrases: commitment, partnership and service delivery. “I look forward to working with the Spaceopal to address the real challenge of translating Galileo’s signal in space into tangible services that will improve the lives of all EU citizens,” he says. “The centre of gravity of the programme is now the user.”

The contract was signed by Carlo des Dorides, on behalf of the GSA, and for Spaceopal by Giuseppe Lenzo and Simon Plum, the company’s COO, at an official ceremony in Brussels on 15 December. The ceremony was featured in an event organised on the occasion of the European Commission’s Declaration of Galileo Initial Services.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The 42nd meeting of the European Organisation for Civil Aviation Equipment (EUROCAE) Working Group 62 (WG-62) was hosted by the European GNSS Agency (GSA) at its Prague Headquarters from 28 – 30 November. Established in 2002, the WG-62 focuses its work on Galileo deployment, the modernisation of GPS and the implementation and evolution of EGNOS as they apply to civil aviation.

The GSA has been a long-time partner of EUROCAE. “As the GSA’s strategy is to focus on user needs, we continue to contribute to the EUROCAE Galileo Working Group and the development of standards for Satellite-based Augmentation Systems (SBAS),” says GSA Chief Executive Carlo des Dorides. “This group allows us to work directly with receiver manufacturers and other international partners in developing the right standards for satellite navigation receivers used in the civil aviation sector.”

On WG-62’s agenda at this meeting were the development of:

• Guidance document on the development of a single constellation Galileo OS receiver Minimum Operational Performance Standard (MOPS)
• SBAS Dual Frequency GPS/Galileo Receiver MOPS

A unique opportunity

As to EGNOS V3, the GSA said it is currently working with the European Space Agency (ESA) on the acquisition process. When operational, the multi-frequency/multi-constellation EGNOS V3 will improve the accuracy and reliability of the positioning information provided not only by GPS, but also Galileo. “This new generation of EGNOS will be the world’s first SBAS system to augment two constellations and the two frequencies used by aviation,” says des Dorides. 

Also read: GSA and EUROCAE working together to build a win-win strategy for Europe

The GSA is currently working on securing the procurement of the DFMC (Dual Frequency Multi Constellation) Aviation prototype receiver (to be used for flight tests) and the GEO-3 Navigation Payload services, in addition to various standardisation tasks. According to des Dorides, it is essential that the GSA have aviation receivers on the market for users to equip their aircraft when EGNOS V3 becomes available, which is expected to happen around 2023. This is because the combination of GPS and Galileo will provide users with a more robust solution and better performance.

“As Europe is the first to deploy the new technology using SBAS to augment Galileo and GPS, we have a unique opportunity to set the standard,” adds des Dorides. “Although we would like to develop this standard with our RTCA partners in the US, nevertheless, European industry should seize this chance to become the first to provide this technology for aviation receivers.”

Currently, the GNSS elements approval scheme, as proposed in the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) new GNSS ConOps, is under discussion by receiver manufacturers. Their decision will serve as the basis for the WG-62’s next round of standards discussions, scheduled for 27-29 June.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The 42nd meeting of the European Organisation for Civil Aviation Equipment (EUROCAE) Working Group 62 (WG-62) was hosted by the European GNSS Agency (GSA) at its Prague Headquarters from 28 – 30 November.

Established in 2002, the WG-62 focuses its work on Galileo deployment, the modernisation of GPS and the implementation and evolution of EGNOS as they apply to civil aviation.

The GSA has been a long-time partner of EUROCAE. “As the GSA’s strategy is to focus on user needs, we continue to contribute to the EUROCAE Galileo Working Group and the development of standards for Satellite-based Augmentation Systems (SBAS),” says GSA Chief Executive Carlo des Dorides. “This group allows us to work directly with receiver manufacturers and other international partners in developing the right standards for satellite navigation receivers used in the civil aviation sector.”

On WG-62’s agenda at this meeting were the development of:

• Guidance document on the development of a single constellation Galileo OS receiver Minimum Operational Performance Standard (MOPS)
• SBAS Dual Frequency GPS/Galileo Receiver MOPS

A unique opportunity

As to EGNOS V3, the GSA said it is currently working with the European Space Agency (ESA) on the acquisition process. When operational, the multi-frequency/multi-constellation EGNOS V3 will improve the accuracy and reliability of the positioning information provided not only by GPS, but also Galileo. “This new generation of EGNOS will be the world’s first SBAS system to augment two constellations and the two frequencies used by aviation,” says des Dorides. 

Also read: GSA and EUROCAE working together to build a win-win strategy for Europe

The GSA is currently working on securing the procurement of the DFMC (Dual Frequency Multi Constellation) Aviation prototype receiver (to be used for flight tests) and the GEO-3 Navigation Payload services, in addition to various standardisation tasks. According to des Dorides, it is essential that the GSA have aviation receivers on the market for users to equip their aircraft when EGNOS V3 becomes available, which is expected to happen around 2023. This is because the combination of GPS and Galileo will provide users with a more robust solution and better performance.

“As Europe is the first to deploy the new technology using SBAS to augment Galileo and GPS, we have a unique opportunity to set the standard,” adds des Dorides. “Although we would like to develop this standard with our RTCA partners in the US, nevertheless, European industry should seize this chance to become the first to provide this technology for aviation receivers.”

Currently, the GNSS elements approval scheme, as proposed in the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) new GNSS ConOps, is under discussion by receiver manufacturers. Their decision will serve as the basis for the WG-62’s next round of standards discussions, scheduled for 27-29 June.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The 2016 GSA Open Days was a chance for the public to get a behind-the-scenes look at the Galileo and EGNOS space programmes.

Four years ago, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) moved its headquarters from Brussels to Prague. To celebrate this anniversary and to highlight the many benefits the GSA brings to both Europe and, in particular, the Czech Republic, the Agency held its second annual Open Days on 2 – 3 December 2016.

This year’s event follows on the heels of the successful Ariane 5 rocket launch, which added four new satellites to the Galileo constellation. The launch increased the number of satellites in orbit to 18 and represents an important milestone as the programme moves towards the declaration of Initial Services later this year.

“Over the past four years, the GSA has been transitioning the Galileo programme from a deployment phase to an exploitation phase,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The upcoming declaration of Galileo Initial Services will confirm the GSA’s role in overseeing the service provision and monitoring the security of the overall system, with our Prague Headquarters serving as the epicentre of this mission.”

This year the GSA welcomed over 2500 visitors who came to learn more about the many ways Europe’s space programmes impact their daily lives. As the theme of this year’s Open Days was Travel from Space to Business, several successful Czech space-based companies were on hand to discuss how their businesses are powered by satellite navigation. The agenda also included an array of lectures and workshops explaining satellite navigation and the GSA (in both Czech and English), along with numerous competitions and interactive exhibits.

Visitors of all ages enjoyed the opportunity to explore a Galileo satellite model in its various configurations, take a space selfie, attempt to land an aircraft using satellite navigation and see the Earth from the vantage point of a satellite. In addition, nearly 500 local students attended Satellite Navigation + Europe = GSA, a special event for schools.

Benefiting the Czech Republic

In addition to giving locals a chance to get an inside look at all that is happening at the GSA, Open Days also serves as an opportunity to highlight how the GSA’s location in Prague benefits the Czech Republic. “We planted the seeds by relocating here, and today we are seeing the results as more space applications and products are coming onto the market that originate from the Czech Republic,” says des Dorides.

According to a GSA study, the Agency’s move has impacted the Czech economy both directly and indirectly. For example, since 2012, the direct benefits to the Czech Economy has reached CZK 800 million. Czech companies also benefit from the GSA’s location in Prague, with an increasing number of companies and consortia of Czech companies and institutions applying for R&D funding via the EU’s Horizon 2020 framework programme for research and innovation.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The second annual GSA Open Days was a chance for the public to get a behind-the-scenes look at the Galileo and EGNOS space programmes.

Four years ago, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) moved its headquarters from Brussels to Prague. To celebrate this anniversary and to highlight the many benefits the GSA brings to both Europe and, in particular, the Czech Republic, the Agency held its second annual Open Days on 2 – 3 December 2016.

This year’s event follows on the heels of the successful Ariane 5 rocket launch, which added four new satellites to the Galileo constellation. The launch increased the number of satellites in orbit to 18 and represents an important milestone as the programme moves towards the declaration of Initial Services later this year.

“Over the past four years, the GSA has been transitioning the Galileo programme from a deployment phase to an exploitation phase,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The upcoming declaration of Galileo Initial Services will confirm the GSA’s role in overseeing the service provision and monitoring the security of the overall system, with our Prague Headquarters serving as the epicentre of this mission.”

This year the GSA welcomed over 2500 visitors who came to learn more about the many ways Europe’s space programmes impact their daily lives. As the theme of this year’s Open Days was Travel from Space to Business, several successful Czech space-based companies were on hand to discuss how their businesses are powered by satellite navigation. The agenda also included an array of lectures and workshops explaining satellite navigation and the GSA (in both Czech and English), along with numerous competitions and interactive exhibits.

Visitors of all ages enjoyed the opportunity to explore a Galileo satellite model in its various configurations, take a space selfie, attempt to land an aircraft using satellite navigation and see the Earth from the vantage point of a satellite. In addition, nearly 500 local students attended Satellite Navigation + Europe = GSA, a special event for schools.

Benefiting the Czech Republic

In addition to giving locals a chance to get an inside look at all that is happening at the GSA, Open Days also serves as an opportunity to highlight how the GSA’s location in Prague benefits the Czech Republic. “We planted the seeds by relocating here, and today we are seeing the results as more space applications and products are coming onto the market that originate from the Czech Republic,” says des Dorides.

According to a GSA study, the Agency’s move has impacted the Czech economy both directly and indirectly. For example, since 2012, the direct benefits to the Czech Economy has reached CZK 800 million. Czech companies also benefit from the GSA’s location in Prague, with an increasing number of companies and consortia of Czech companies and institutions applying for R&D funding via the EU’s Horizon 2020 framework programme for research and innovation.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) helps lay the ceremonial first brick to officially commence construction on the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.

With the laying of the ceremonial first brick, the construction of the Galileo Reference Centre (GRC) has officially commenced. The First Brick Ceremony, a Dutch ground breaking tradition, was held 24 November in Noordwijk, the future home of the GRC.

"With four satellites launched last week, the countdown to Galileo Initial Services has started,” said European Commission DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs Programme Manager for Galileo and EGNOS, Paul Flament. “The GRC will help ensure that Galileo users are provided with very high quality signals that can be used by an array of new navigation applications.”

GSA Galileo Operations and Maintenance Manager, Davide Castellazzi, added to this, noting that the GRC will play an important role in the Galileo service provision. “The GRC is a cornerstone of the Galileo service provision, from Initial Services to full operational capability and beyond,” he said. “It will be instrumental in monitoring the performance of the system and the service operator, and serves as the door through which Member States can contribute to these tasks.”

“Satellite systems like Galileo are opening up new opportunities in every sector – from water to mobility, energy, agriculture, climate change and food security – and the Netherlands is eager to take full advantage of these opportunities,” said Netherlands Space Office (NSO) Director Ger Nieuwpoort. “This is why the NSO is dedicated to stimulating the use of satellite navigation within government processes and why I am happy to join the European space community here in the Netherlands to officially start building the GRC.” Through a commission by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment, the NSO serves as project manager for the GRC construction process.

An important facility in the Galileo programme

Announced at last year’s European Space Solutions Conference in The Hague, the GRC’s core mission is to perform independent monitoring of and reporting on Galileo’s performance. Operated by the GSA, the GRC provides the Agency with an independent system to evaluate the performance of the Galileo Services and, consequently, the Galileo Service Operator, and the quality of the signals in space.

The Noordwijk facility, set to become operational in 2017, will actively integrate contributions from the EU Member States, Norway and Switzerland. The facility is charged with generating performance evaluation products, performing dedicated campaign-based analyses, and reporting on their findings.

“By providing the building for the GRC, the Netherlands underlines the importance it attaches to the Galileo programme and the Noordwijk space cluster,” said Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment Director of International Affairs Bart van Bolhuis. He also stressed the excellent cooperation between all the parties involved in the project, including the European Commission, the GSA, the European Space Agency (ESA), the municipality of Noordwijk and various government organisations. “This coordinated effort has resulted in a relatively short definition phase for the building and a rapid start of the building activities,” he said.

“The GSA appreciates the efforts made by the Netherlands to ensure a state-of-the-art GRC building that provides excellent working conditions and is capable of handling the tasks entrusted to it,” added Castellazzi. “We look forward to making use of the new building soon.”

The Galileo Services Operator

The Galileo Services Operator (GSOp), under a contract with the GSA, will operate and maintain the Galileo global component. This includes ensuring that the core Galileo services (Open Service, Commercial Service and Public Regulated Service) are provided in compliance with all performance requirements.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

France’s Air and Space Academy recognises EGNOS for its significant contribution to European space.

The European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) was recently recognised by France’s Air and Space Academy (AAE). In honour of its significant scientific and technical contribution to European space, EGNOS was awarded the AAE’s Vermeil Medal during its 25 November 2016 plenary session in Toulouse. The medal is awarded annually to an individual or organisation that has achieved international notoriety in the field of aerospace. 

“I’m pleased to share this distinction with the EGNOS team and the entire GSA, which has dedicated many years to the success of this programme,” says GSA EGNOS Exploitation Programme Manager Jean-Marc Piéplu. “Many of my colleagues have personally contributed to the development of EGNOS, and this medal belongs to all of them.” 

Also read: EGNOS lays the foundation for Galileo

Joining Jean-Marc in receiving the award was European Space Agency (ESA) Head of EGNOS and SBAS Division Didier Flament and ENAIRE (Spain’s air navigation management organisation) Head of International Affairs and SESAR Coordinator Mariluz de Mateo.    

EGNOS also played a role in this year’s Great Prize winner, which went to the EGNOS-equipped Airbus A350-XWB.

About the AAE

Founded in 1983 in Toulouse, the AAE encourages the development of high quality scientific, technical, cultural and human actions in both air and space. To do so, it promotes knowledge sharing across the industry and serves as a focal point for aerospace activities. Its members – who come from all walks of aerospace life and include pilots, astronauts, scientists, engineers, doctors, manufactures, economists, lawyers and artists from France and Europe – work together to achieve these essential goals.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The ability to access raw GNSS measurements opens up a range of opportunities for mobile app developers, but how do you access the data? During the first European GNSS Agency (GSA) Galileo Hackathon at the WhereCamp ‘unconference’ in Berlin Dr Lukasz Bonenberg from the University of Nottingham explained how app-developers can access raw GNSS measurements on smartphones via the latest release of the Android operating system.

The technical briefing for app-developers at the first GSA Hackathon at Beuth Hochschule für Technik in Berlin covered the latest developments and opportunities for GNSS and Location Based Services (LBS) including both hardware and software.

The hardware that the hackers used in the Hackathon - the Galileo-enabled BQ Aquaris X5 Plus Android smartphone - was described by Alvaro Fructuoso and Olaja Segura from the phone’s manufacturer. At the heart of the phone is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chip that provides a true multi-constellation GNSS experience.

Digging down in Nougat

The next generation of Android operating system (7.0) is named Nougat and allows access to GNSS raw measurements using a new version of Google’s application programme interfaces (APIs) that give more flexible and deeper access to positioning data. Dr Lukasz Bonenberg from the University of Nottingham opened up the ‘black box’ that is the modern smartphone and shed some light on where hackers and coders needed to look to get access to this data.

Currently, location in Android is accessed via Google Play Services GMS Location providing activity and location awareness that can be easily harnessed by coders to provide enhanced location data (e.g. geofencing, near services etc.) for their apps. New Android Nougat (API v24) adds extra capacities. It directly accesses sensor data via android.location. This data has previously been hidden away in physical drivers, but access now opens up possibilities for higher accuracy and deployment of algorithms currently restricted to more advanced GNSS receivers.

While access to the raw data becomes easier, its use is still a challenging task. The key to reading GNSS measurements is the synching of clocks between the phone and the GNSS satellites to give pseudoranges – effectively the distance from the phone to the satellite degraded by the clock errors. To get an accurate and reliable fix requires signals – and therefore calculated pseudoranges - from at least four GNSS satellites, explained Bonenberg.

MatLab codes

To support this Google has released the MatLlab code demonstrating both the data collection (GNSS data logger application) as well as calculation details for obtaining observations and calculating position. To further support the development community, Bonenberg is developing a version of the processing code in the Python programming language. It is available at his GitHub together with his edits to the original Google MatLab code.

“The ability to access raw data opens up a range of possibilities and opportunities,” claimed Bonenberg. These comprise the use of external corrections including existing differential-GNSS and augmentations services such as EGNOS for high precision. More opportunities come with advanced algorithms to reduce errors in urban areas by, for example, removing satellites that are blocked by buildings from the positioning calculation, and the ability to fuse GNSS data with data from other phone based sensors such as the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU).

Work is also carried out using carrier phase measurements offering even better positional performance. Not only do these developments promise improved accuracy, availability and reliability or data fusion for mass market applications, but also the ability to use those devices in the domains currently reserved for much more expensive and dedicated GNSS receivers Bonenberg concluded.

“The ability to access GNSS raw data on Android devices opens up a range of possibilities and opportunities.”

More information:

WhereCamp
Android Developers: Location
Lukasz Bonenberg’s GitHub on Android GNSS

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With more signals and better accuracy, Galileo is an invaluable resource for mobile developers working on precise positioning applications. During the first Galileo Hackathon at the WhereCamp in Berlin, experts from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) shared how Galileo is boosting accuracy and making positioning applications more precise.

App-developers at the first GSA Hackathon in Berlin got a full technical briefing on the latest developments and opportunities for GNSS and Location Based Services (LBS) at Beuth Hochschule für Technik. The packed briefing session heard why the GSA wants the developer community to play with Galileo data, how it hopes to stimulate the community to use Galileo signals to enhance their applications and, therefore, bring the two closer together.

To give the users further insight on the various data outputs and capabilities of Galileo, and GNSS in general, Michele Bavaro of the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) described his work in testing Galileo ready receiver hardware.

Testing hardware

Broadly, two main categories of GNSS receivers exist: professional precision receivers and mass-market (currently only single frequency) receivers. Professional receivers are used for applications requiring high-accuracy, typically at decimetre, centimetre and even millimetre level. The mass-market category includes the chipsets found in smartphones, tablets, sat-navs, trackers, cheap drones and wearable electronics.

Last year JRC was involved in the assessment of Galileo-compliance and also characterised the effects of interference for a total of seven precision receivers. More recently, JRC has worked closely with the GSA and assessed the availability and consistency of the Galileo observables on the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone.

“Galileo is different to the current GPS system,” Bavaro stated. “It has more signals and better accuracy: essentially I believe it is the future of navigation.” He showed the results of simulated and real world testing of combined GPS + Galileo signals in both static and mobile situations. All the receiver manufacturers had been extremely supportive during the testing.

Bavaro said that the residuals of the Galileo E1 signal were smaller than those of the equivalent GPS L1 signal and that the performance of the combined (GPS+Galileo) signals was always better in both nominal and interference testing scenarios. The accuracy in live mobile testing could only be partially assessed due to the limited number of Galileo satellites available at the time.

The results of the testing showed that Galileo support is mature in most precision professional receivers and, where it is not, manufacturers are ready to implement changes and improve their firmware. Chipsets for the mass-market mainly support Galileo as an adaptation of their legacy GPS technology, so the full potential benefits of the modernised Galileo Signal in Space (SIS) are not necessarily exploited. Those chipsets, unlike professional ones, are also required to maintain minimal battery power drain and have to rely on simplified front ends and antennas.

Galileo for smartphones

Smartphones and tablets are often connected to Internet, allowing them to fully explore web based Assisted GNSS (reducing their time to first fix (TTFF) to a few seconds). In other words the navigation information (on satellite orbits and clocks), which normally needs to be decoded from live SIS can be retrieved from the Internet instead, with a validity of several days. In addition the computational core of the GNSS receiver is a small piece of silicon Intellectual Property (IP) inside a System on Chip (SoC) which also integrates the application processor.

“The Galileo E1 Open Service (OS) signals are designed with an in-phase pair of data and pilot,” explained Bavaro. “The availability of a (data-less) pilot channel represents a unique asset for smartphones as it allows a level of processing gain, and therefore sensitivity, only bounded by the quality of the receiver's internal oscillator.”

Such oscillators have greatly improved in the last decade driven by the need for high data-rates on cellular networks (4G) and WiFi. From a 200 milliseconds signal snapshot a smartphone can derive a very precise, unambiguous ranging signal to Galileo satellites by leveraging the pilot codes. This is much harder to do with GPS signals.

The Galileo E1BC signals also overlap in frequency with GPS L1 thus they don't require additional radio frequency circuitry inside a GNSS chip, just more silicon for digital signal processing. The binary offset carrier (BOC) modulation used by Galileo is more robust compared to GPS in most modern receiver architectures and another obvious advantage of Galileo E1BC modulation is that it has three times higher accuracy than the legacy GPS.

Galileo uses longer codes compared to GPS, which makes the code synchronisation search longer and more difficult to perform for a receiver, but in turn the ranging has much larger ambiguity of 1200 km compared to 300 km for GPS. Again this greatly reduces the search space for all receivers.

Trends in GNSS

Bavaro identified the major trends in GNSS research as Protect, Toughen and Augment (PTA). There is a need to introduce rules to protect the valuable spectrum which is the basis for provision of position and time globally. In parallel GNSS vulnerabilities must be addressed, making satellite navigation more resilient to malicious attacks or involuntary-induced signal anomalies such as jamming and spoofing. And finally synergies with other technologies must be assessed that can increase availability and robustness.

Today everyone carries at least one GNSS receiver and the mass market needs ever increasing availability, accuracy and reliability. With the advent of drones and self-driving vehicles coexisting with humans’ personal space there is a requirement for even more accuracy, availability and reliability. This means there is a need for both an enhanced Signal in Space and the integrity service provided by EGNOS.

“Today satellite positioning is done by billions of people using signals designed 40 years ago as secondary channels for military users - GPS L1 C/A stands for ‘Coarse Acquisition’,” says Bavaro. “Europe has a unique opportunity to provide the new de-facto standard for GNSS. It is obvious that, if all the vulnerabilities are accounted for, it is time to start building user accuracy, availability and reliability on top of a modern PNT system, and Galileo may well be all or part of that system.”

“Galileo signals are inherently more accurate. The future for locations is based on accuracy, so Galileo is an answer,” he concluded. “Galileo was born to be compatible with GPS so it is also relatively cheap and easy to integrate with existing GNSS receiver technology.”

“Galileo signals are inherently more accurate. The future for location is based on accuracy.”

More information:
WhereCamp
European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC)

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The scope of the GSA’s ISO 9001 certification has been extended to include the management of the Galileo exploitation phase and the operation of the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC). The announcement follows extensive internal and external audits of the GSMC in France and GSA Headquarters in Prague.

ISO 9001 is an internationally-recognised standard certifying an organisation’s Quality Management System (QMS). The GSA’s QMS has been ISO 9001 certified since December 2014, with the original certification covering activities in preparation for the Galileo exploitation phase and GSMC activities. The extended certification now covers all Agency activities related to the development, maintenance and improvement of European GNSS user-oriented services and related infrastructure, including: managing the EGNOS and Galileo exploitation phases, operating the GSMC, supporting security accreditation and promoting innovation in GNSS applications and services with the support of an enabling administrative platform (i.e., legal, procurement, human resources, ICT, communications, etc.). 

“As we move closer to the declaration of Galileo Initial Services, this extended certification is an important step as it demonstrates the GSA’s commitment to quality processes and allows us to deliver more effective and efficient services that better respond to user needs,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides.

The current certification is valid through December 2017. The GSA is already preparing to renew the certification. 

About ISO 9001

The International Standards Organisation (ISO) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is carried out through ISO technical committees, in liaison with international organisations, governmental and non-governmental bodies.

ISO 9001 specifies the requirements for a Quality Management System (QMS) that may be used by organisations for internal application, certification or contractual purposes. The process approach is shown in the conceptual model from the ISO 9001 Standard, recognising that customers play a significant role in defining requirements as inputs, and monitoring of customer satisfaction is necessary to evaluate and validate whether customer requirements have been met.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Following the successful launch of four Galileo satellites, the Galileo constellation now has 18 satellites in orbit as it moves towards the declaration of Initial Services.The launch was the first time the European Ariane-5 launcher was used for the Galileo programme. “The Galileo launch was a great success,” says European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs Elżbieta Bieńkowska. “With more satellites in orbit, Galileo will soon be able to offer Initial Services for its users.”

The declaration of Initial Services is expected soon and, with it, Galileo will officially go from being a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) system in testing to a live, operational service. For the first time ever, European satellites will provide users with global positioning, navigation and timing information.

“As we transition from a deployment phase to an exploitation phase, the GSA will take a prominent role in overseeing the service provision and monitoring the security of the overall system,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The GSA is ready to make Galileo work for Europe.”  

While the four new satellites are not a prerequisite for declaring Initial Services, and will not be used for Galileo services until in-orbit commissioning is complete, each additional satellite reinforces the constellation and improves the availability and performance of the system.

Until the full satellite constellation and ground infrastructure are in place, which is expected to happen in 2020, Galileo will be used in combination with GPS – a combination that provides users with an enhanced level of service.  

Ready to make its mark

The declaration of Galileo Initial Services is the first step towards reaching full operational capability. The first services offered by Galileo include the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS), and Search and Rescue Service (SAR). With Initial Services, all mass-market devices containing a Galileo-enabled chipset, such as smartphones and vehicle navigation devices, can use Galileo signals for positioning, navigation and timing.

Watch This: GSA ready for Initial Services

Many Galileo compatible products can already be found in stores. In fact, almost 60% of all available receivers, chipsets and modules support a minimum of two GNSS constellation. Of these, nearly 40% are Galileo compatible – a figure that is increasing every day. Furthermore, by 2018, Galileo will be found in every new model of vehicle sold in Europe, enabling the eCall emergency response system.

European citizens stand to benefit greatly from Galileo Initial Services. For example, the Search and Rescue service reduces the time it takes to detect a person lost at sea or in the mountains from three hours to just 10 minutes after a distress beacon is activated. Users will also benefit from the increased availability of satellite signals that Galileo provides.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The WhereCamp Berlin ‘unconference’ on 3 and 4 November offered exciting insights on the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and the Geo-IoT (Geolocation - Internet of Things) including some interesting developments around the use of LBS provided by European GNSS. The meeting featured the first ever Galileo Hackathon (link) and a plenary session hosted by the GSA on Technology Trends in Geolocation presented by the global leaders in the field: Qualcomm, Broadcom and Google.

WhereCamp ‘unconferences’ are dedicated to geolocation professionals and students. This sixth European version took place at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. A feature of the WhereCamp is the relative young age of the enthusiastic audience. They were welcomed by Prof. Dr. Sebastian von Klinski, Vice President of the university, who claimed that the advances in location based services in recent years were just the “tip of the iceberg” in terms of expected societal changes. New regulations and economic structures would be needed to cope with the disruptive changes that Geo-IoT technologies would bring.

In an opening panel moderated by Prof. Dr. Roland Wagner of the WhereCamp organisers Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation, some LBS experts considered where the industry was going. Nicholas Goubert, Senior Director Product Management at HERE Open Location Platform talked about the need for “location intelligence”. He thought users were becoming lazier so there was a need to push the right amount of relevant data at the right time to them. “Location is one angle to bring that right data,” he claimed.

Gary Gale of Malstow Geospatial, who described himself as a Geotechnologist and Neogeographer, said that “we should not be surprised when the next disruptive innovation arrives” in location. He agreed that “we are currently drowning in data” and the big change will occur when “services will be created to make sense of all these data.”

Tech Trends in Geo-IoT

Justyna Redelkiewicz from the GSA opened the GNSS-focussed session by presenting the highlights of the recently published GNSS User Technology report. According to the report, five main areas of innovation will drive the future of LBS:

1. connectivity (providing faster fixes in assisted mode and enabling all crowd-sourced apps that include sharing location);
2. indoor usage with the objective of a seamless location everywhere;
3. continuous availability of signal in difficult environments;
4. better accuracy (one metre or less); and
5. power consumption reduction especially with increasing complexity.

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases,” she said. “Emerging indoor location technologies and GNSS multi-constellation outdoors will enable this true ubiquity”. At a technical level, the recent decision by Google to allow users to access raw GNSS data in the latest releases of Android software and the advent of dual frequency GNSS signals could both bring enhanced accuracy to mass market applications.

In terms of Geo-IoT, Mrs. Redelkiewicz saw GNSS as a key component. “IoT is driven by a combination of sensors and connectivity that must include GNSS,” she argued.

Hamid Nazeman from Qualcomm Europe described the latest location technology and GNSS innovations in the current generation of Snapdragon processors. He estimated that between 2015 and 2019, some 8.5 billion smartphones would be shipped cumulatively. He argued that while connectivity is the key enabling technology for smartphone users, that location is also increasingly integral to the mobile experience – and that users won’t compromise on experience. Snapdragon processors fully integrate location technologies, leveraging GNSS, cellular, and Wi-Fi signals, as well as other third party sensor inputs. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. is rolling out broad support for Galileo this year across its Snapdragon processor and modem portfolios. In July, the first European Galileo-ready smartphone – the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus – was launched with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor.

The opportunities for dual frequency in consumer applications were described by Manuel Del Castillo of another leading chip maker: Broadcom. He saw the main benefit of accessing both L1/E1 and L5/E5 signals in terms of increased accuracy. The inherent improved properties of Galileo E1 and L5/E5 provide better accuracy and allow some mitigation of multipath issues, which would be a benefit for navigation and LBS in urban environments. He also claimed that sensitivity would be improved due to the higher transmission power of the L5/E5 signals.

“In real world testing, Broadcom has already shown four-times more accuracy using dual frequency as compared to single frequency solutions,” claimed Mr. Del Castillo. The company will implement dual frequency with the next generation of Broadcom chips. Despite having dual frequency capability, the new chips will also consume less power due to an advanced manufacturing process.

Android for surveying?

Finally, Ed Parsons from Google explored the developments in Android software that now allow users to access more easily GNSS data, including raw signal measurements, to build innovative applications. He said that “location was an essential element of making contextual applications work” and that “GPS is old school, now we are in the era of multi-constellation GNSS.” This will add new functions: in particular a much quicker time to get a location fix.

He stated that the ability to access and use raw measurements could enable new levels of accuracy – even down to few centimetres. This enhanced sensitivity and precision would make a whole host of new and exciting applications and uses possible in the surveying domain.

Mr. Parsons was asked if Google was considering running its own base station network for precise positioning.  He thought the idea was conceivable, but there might be better ways to reach precise positioning RTK-like solutions, including, for example, the usage of EGNOS.

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm
Broadcom
Google
Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation
GSA Technology Trends Report

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The WhereCamp Berlin ‘unconference’ on 3 and 4 November offered exciting insights on the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and the Geo-IoT (Geolocation - Internet of Things) including some interesting developments around the use of LBS provided by European GNSS. The meeting featured the first ever Galileo Hackathon (link) and a plenary session hosted by the GSA on Technology Trends in Geolocation presented by the global leaders in the field: Qualcomm, Broadcom and Google.

WhereCamp ‘unconferences’ are dedicated to geolocation professionals and students. This sixth European version took place at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. A feature of the WhereCamp is the relative young age of the enthusiastic audience. They were welcomed by Prof. Dr. Sebastian von Klinski, Vice President of the university, who claimed that the advances in location based services in recent years were just the “tip of the iceberg” in terms of expected societal changes. New regulations and economic structures would be needed to cope with the disruptive changes that Geo-IoT technologies would bring.

In an opening panel moderated by Prof. Dr. Roland Wagner of the WhereCamp organisers Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation, some LBS experts considered where the industry was going. Nicholas Goubert, Senior Director Product Management at HERE Open Location Platform talked about the need for “location intelligence”. He thought users were becoming lazier so there was a need to push the right amount of relevant data at the right time to them. “Location is one angle to bring that right data,” he claimed.

Gary Gale of Malstow Geospatial, who described himself as a Geotechnologist and Neogeographer, said that “we should not be surprised when the next disruptive innovation arrives” in location. He agreed that “we are currently drowning in data” and the big change will occur when “services will be created to make sense of all these data.”

Tech Trends in Geo-IoT

Justyna Redelkiewicz from the GSA opened the GNSS-focussed session by presenting the highlights of the recently published GNSS User Technology report. According to the report, five main areas of innovation will drive the future of LBS:

1. connectivity (providing faster fixes in assisted mode and enabling all crowd-sourced apps that include sharing location);
2. indoor usage with the objective of a seamless location everywhere;
3. continuous availability of signal in difficult environments;
4. better accuracy (one metre or less); and
5. power consumption reduction especially with increasing complexity.

Technology Trends in Geolocation, panel discussion, WhereCamp Berlin, 3-4 November 2016

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases,” she said. “Emerging indoor location technologies and GNSS multi-constellation outdoors will enable this true ubiquity”. At a technical level, the recent decision by Google to allow users to access raw GNSS data in the latest releases of Android software and the advent of dual frequency GNSS signals could both bring enhanced accuracy to mass market applications.

In terms of Geo-IoT, Mrs. Redelkiewicz saw GNSS as a key component. “IoT is driven by a combination of sensors and connectivity that must include GNSS,” she argued.

Hamid Nazeman from Qualcomm Europe described the latest location technology and GNSS innovations in the current generation of Snapdragon processors. He estimated that between 2015 and 2019, some 8.5 billion smartphones would be shipped cumulatively. He argued that while connectivity is the key enabling technology for smartphone users, that location is also increasingly integral to the mobile experience – and that users won’t compromise on experience. Snapdragon processors fully integrate location technologies, leveraging GNSS, cellular, and Wi-Fi signals, as well as other third party sensor inputs. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. is rolling out broad support for Galileo this year across its Snapdragon processor and modem portfolios. In July, the first European Galileo-ready smartphone – the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus – was launched with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor.

The opportunities for dual frequency in consumer applications were described by Manuel Del Castillo of another leading chip maker: Broadcom. He saw the main benefit of accessing both L1/E1 and L5/E5 signals in terms of increased accuracy. The inherent improved properties of Galileo E1 and L5/E5 provide better accuracy and allow some mitigation of multipath issues, which would be a benefit for navigation and LBS in urban environments. He also claimed that sensitivity would be improved due to the higher transmission power of the L5/E5 signals.

“In real world testing, Broadcom has already shown four-times more accuracy using dual frequency as compared to single frequency solutions,” claimed Mr. Del Castillo. The company will implement dual frequency with the next generation of Broadcom chips. Despite having dual frequency capability, the new chips will also consume less power due to an advanced manufacturing process.

Android for surveying?

Finally, Ed Parsons from Google explored the developments in Android software that now allow users to access more easily GNSS data, including raw signal measurements, to build innovative applications. He said that “location was an essential element of making contextual applications work” and that “GPS is old school, now we are in the era of multi-constellation GNSS.” This will add new functions: in particular a much quicker time to get a location fix.

He stated that the ability to access and use raw measurements could enable new levels of accuracy – even down to few centimetres. This enhanced sensitivity and precision would make a whole host of new and exciting applications and uses possible in the surveying domain.

Mr. Parsons was asked if Google was considering running its own base station network for precise positioning.  He thought the idea was conceivable, but there might be better ways to reach precise positioning RTK-like solutions, including, for example, the usage of EGNOS.

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm
Broadcom
Google
Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation
GSA Technology Trends Report

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The WhereCamp Berlin ‘unconference’ on 3 and 4 November offered exciting insights on the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and the Geo-IoT (Geolocation - Internet of Things) including some interesting developments around the use of LBS provided by European GNSS. The meeting featured the first ever Galileo Hackathon (link) and a plenary session hosted by the GSA on Technology Trends in Geolocation presented by the global leaders in the field: Qualcomm, Broadcom and Google.

WhereCamp ‘unconferences’ are dedicated to geolocation professionals and students. This sixth European version took place at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. A feature of the WhereCamp is the relative young age of the enthusiastic audience. They were welcomed by Prof. Dr. Sebastian von Klinski, Vice President of the university, who claimed that the advances in location based services in recent years were just the “tip of the iceberg” in terms of expected societal changes. New regulations and economic structures would be needed to cope with the disruptive changes that Geo-IoT technologies would bring.

In an opening panel moderated by Prof. Dr. Roland Wagner of the WhereCamp organisers Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation, some LBS experts considered where the industry was going. Nicholas Goubert, Senior Director Product Management at HERE Open Location Platform talked about the need for “location intelligence”. He thought users were becoming lazier so there was a need to push the right amount of relevant data at the right time to them. “Location is one angle to bring that right data,” he claimed.

Gary Gale of Malstow Geospatial, who described himself as a Geotechnologist and Neogeographer, said that “we should not be surprised when the next disruptive innovation arrives” in location. He agreed that “we are currently drowning in data” and the big change will occur when “services will be created to make sense of all these data.”

Tech Trends in Geo-IoT

Justyna Redelkiewicz from the GSA opened the GNSS-focussed session by presenting the highlights of the recently published GNSS User Technology report. According to the report, five main areas of innovation will drive the future of LBS:

1. connectivity (providing faster fixes in assisted mode and enabling all crowd-sourced apps that include sharing location);
2. indoor usage with the objective of a seamless location everywhere;
3. continuous availability of signal in difficult environments;
4. better accuracy (one metre or less); and
5. power consumption reduction especially with increasing complexity.

Technology Trends in Geolocation, panel discussion, WhereCamp Berlin, 3-4 November 2016

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases,” she said. “Emerging indoor location technologies and GNSS multi-constellation outdoors will enable this true ubiquity”. At a technical level, the recent decision by Google to allow users to access raw GNSS data in the latest releases of Android software and the advent of dual frequency GNSS signals could both bring enhanced accuracy to mass market applications.

In terms of Geo-IoT, Mrs. Redelkiewicz saw GNSS as a key component. “IoT is driven by a combination of sensors and connectivity that must include GNSS,” she argued.

Hamid Nazeman from Qualcomm Europe described the latest location technology and GNSS innovations in the current generation of Snapdragon processors. He estimated that between 2015 and 2019, some 8.5 billion smartphones would be shipped cumulatively. He argued that while connectivity is the key enabling technology for smartphone users, that location is also increasingly integral to the mobile experience – and that users won’t compromise on experience. Snapdragon processors fully integrate location technologies, leveraging GNSS, cellular, and Wi-Fi signals, as well as other third party sensor inputs. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. is rolling out broad support for Galileo this year across its Snapdragon processor and modem portfolios. In July, the first European Galileo-ready smartphone – the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus – was launched with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor.

The opportunities for dual frequency in consumer applications were described by Manuel Del Castillo of another leading chip maker: Broadcom. He saw the main benefit of accessing both L1/E1 and L5/E5 signals in terms of increased accuracy. The inherent improved properties of Galileo E1 and L5/E5 provide better accuracy and allow some mitigation of multipath issues, which would be a benefit for navigation and LBS in urban environments. He also claimed that sensitivity would be improved due to the higher transmission power of the L5/E5 signals.

“In real world testing, Broadcom has already shown four-times more accuracy using dual frequency as compared to single frequency solutions,” claimed Mr. Del Castillo. The company will implement dual frequency with the next generation of Broadcom chips. Despite having dual frequency capability, the new chips will also consume less power due to an advanced manufacturing process.

Android for surveying?

Finally, Ed Parsons from Google explored the developments in Android software that now allow users to access more easily GNSS data, including raw signal measurements, to build innovative applications. He said that “location was an essential element of making contextual applications work” and that “GPS is old school, now we are in the era of multi-constellation GNSS.” This will add new functions: in particular a much quicker time to get a location fix.

He stated that the ability to access and use raw measurements could enable new levels of accuracy – even down to few centimetres. This enhanced sensitivity and precision would make a whole host of new and exciting applications and uses possible in the surveying domain.

Mr. Parsons was asked if Google was considering running its own base station network for precise positioning.  He thought the idea was conceivable, but there might be better ways to reach precise positioning RTK-like solutions, including, for example, the usage of EGNOS.

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm
Broadcom
Google
Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation
GSA Technology Trends Report

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The WhereCamp Berlin ‘unconference’ on 3 and 4 November offered exciting insights on the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and the Geo-IoT (Geolocation - Internet of Things) including some interesting developments around the use of LBS provided by European GNSS. The meeting featured the first ever Galileo Hackathon (link) and a plenary session hosted by the GSA on Technology Trends in Geolocation presented by the global leaders in the field: Qualcomm, Broadcom and Google.

WhereCamp ‘unconferences’ are dedicated to geolocation professionals and students. This sixth European version took place at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. A feature of the WhereCamp is the relative young age of the enthusiastic audience. They were welcomed by Prof. Dr. Sebastian von Klinski, Vice President of the university, who claimed that the advances in location based services in recent years were just the “tip of the iceberg” in terms of expected societal changes. New regulations and economic structures would be needed to cope with the disruptive changes that Geo-IoT technologies would bring.

In an opening panel moderated by Prof. Dr. Roland Wagner of the WhereCamp organisers Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation, some LBS experts considered where the industry was going. Nicholas Goubert, Senior Director Product Management at HERE Open Location Platform talked about the need for “location intelligence”. He thought users were becoming lazier so there was a need to push the right amount of relevant data at the right time to them. “Location is one angle to bring that right data,” he claimed.

Gary Gale of Malstow Geospatial, who described himself as a Geotechnologist and Neogeographer, said that “we should not be surprised when the next disruptive innovation arrives” in location. He agreed that “we are currently drowning in data” and the big change will occur when “services will be created to make sense of all these data.”

Tech Trends in Geo-IoT

Justyna Redelkiewicz from the GSA opened the GNSS-focussed session by presenting the highlights of the recently published GNSS User Technology report. According to the report, five main areas of innovation will drive the future of LBS:

1. connectivity (providing faster fixes in assisted mode and enabling all crowd-sourced apps that include sharing location);
2. indoor usage with the objective of a seamless location everywhere;
3. continuous availability of signal in difficult environments;
4. better accuracy (one metre or less); and
5. power consumption reduction especially with increasing complexity.

Technology Trends in Geolocation, panel discussion, WhereCamp Berlin, 3-4 November 2016

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases,” she said. “Emerging indoor location technologies and GNSS multi-constellation outdoors will enable this true ubiquity”. At a technical level, the recent decision by Google to allow users to access raw GNSS data in the latest releases of Android software and the advent of dual frequency GNSS signals could both bring enhanced accuracy to mass market applications.

In terms of Geo-IoT, Mrs. Redelkiewicz saw GNSS as a key component. “IoT is driven by a combination of sensors and connectivity that must include GNSS,” she argued.

Hamid Nazeman from Qualcomm Europe described the latest location technology and GNSS innovations in the current generation of Snapdragon processors. He estimated that between 2015 and 2019, some 8.5 billion smartphones would be shipped cumulatively. He argued that while connectivity is the key enabling technology for smartphone users, that location is also increasingly integral to the mobile experience – and that users won’t compromise on experience. Snapdragon processors fully integrate location technologies, leveraging GNSS, cellular, and Wi-Fi signals, as well as other third party sensor inputs. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. is rolling out broad support for Galileo this year across its Snapdragon processor and modem portfolios. In July, the first European Galileo-ready smartphone – the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus – was launched with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor.

The opportunities for dual frequency in consumer applications were described by Manuel Del Castillo of another leading chip maker: Broadcom. He saw the main benefit of accessing both L1/E1 and L5/E5 signals in terms of increased accuracy. The inherent improved properties of Galileo E1 and L5/E5 provide better accuracy and allow some mitigation of multipath issues, which would be a benefit for navigation and LBS in urban environments. He also claimed that sensitivity would be improved due to the higher transmission power of the L5/E5 signals.

“In real world testing, Broadcom has already shown four-times more accuracy using dual frequency as compared to single frequency solutions,” claimed Mr. Del Castillo. The company will implement dual frequency with the next generation of Broadcom chips. Despite having dual frequency capability, the new chips will also consume less power due to an advanced manufacturing process.

Android for surveying?

Finally, Ed Parsons from Google explored the developments in Android software that now allow users to access more easily GNSS data, including raw signal measurements, to build innovative applications. He said that “location was an essential element of making contextual applications work” and that “GPS is old school, now we are in the era of multi-constellation GNSS.” This will add new functions: in particular a much quicker time to get a location fix.

He stated that the ability to access and use raw measurements could enable new levels of accuracy – even down to few centimetres. This enhanced sensitivity and precision would make a whole host of new and exciting applications and uses possible in the surveying domain.

Mr. Parsons was asked if Google was considering running its own base station network for precise positioning.  He thought the idea was conceivable, but there might be better ways to reach precise positioning RTK-like solutions, including, for example, the usage of EGNOS.

“As connectivity increases, the need for ubiquitous location increases.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm
Broadcom
Google
Association for Geoinformatics, GeoIT and Navigation
GSA Technology Trends Report

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In an effort to promote the benefits of Galileo and the imminent declaration of Initial Services to the broader GNSS user community in Sweden, the Swedish Board of Radio Navigation (RNN) recently held a seminar in Stockholm with the participation of the European GNSS Agency (GSA). Entitled How can Galileo contribute to more cost-effective production applications in the PNT field?, the seminar provided an overview of how Sweden is preparing to implement Galileo signals into professional Positioning, Navigation and Time (PNT) applications.

The event brought together over 60 chipset and receiver manufacturers, government authorities and end users who discussed such topics as: the efforts and requirements for implementing Galileo into GNSS-equipment and Network Real Time Kinetic (RTK) platforms, testing and needs, status of Sweden’s national GNSS infrastructure, and an overview of how Galileo is set to enhance PNT services in Sweden.

Infrastructure and Equipment are getting ready

According to a GNSS-user panel, there is an expectation that Galileo will:

• Improve GNSS-measurements
• Allow users to take measurements in environments with limited satellite visibility (i.e., in urban settings and dense tree cover)
• Decrease uncertainty in a signal’s position and time

The panel was comprised of local authorities from Malmö (Sweden’s third largest city), forest administrators from Lidingö, Lantmäteriet (the Swedish Mapping Cadastral and Land Registration Authority), WSP Consultancy Group, the Swedish Maritime Administration, and marine surveying company Clinton Marin Survey and Time Applications. 

The panel members expect that Galileo will improve their GNSS-measurements in environments with limited “satellite visibility” and decrease uncertainty in position and time determination.  Panel members noted that additional field tests showing the benefits of implementing Galileo data and a list of Galileo-enabled equipment would be helpful to them as they make the transition towards Galileo. Here the GSA noted that numerous chipset and receiver manufacturers – including Leica, Topcon and Trimble – are already offering Galileo-enabled equipment, products and applications. In fact, according to the GSA’s GNSS Market Report, almost 60% of all available receivers, chipsets and modules support a minimum of two GNSS constellations. Of these, nearly 40% are Galileo compatible – a figure that is increasing every day. As of December 2016, a full list of Galileo-enabled products, services and devices will be available at www.useGalileo.eu.

The Agency also noted that with the imminent declaration of Initial Services, the Galileo GNSS constellation will become operationally ready to offer its first range of services, including the Open Service, Public Regulated Service (PRS) and Search and Rescue Service (SAR). The Declaration of Galileo Initial Services is the first step towards full operational capability, which will occur when the Galileo constellation is complete in 2020. Between the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services and full operational capability, additional satellites will be added to the constellation, allowing new services to become available. 

Positive Signs in Sweden

According to SWEPOS, the Swedish network of permanent reference stations has Galileo-compatible equipment on all of its 300 stations. The network is now only waiting for the manufacturer to provide a software upgrade so the system can handle Galileo data on its control side. On-going developments on the infrastructure required to use Galileo and EGNOS in professional applications were also reported by representatives of the Swedish Maritime Authority, Luftfartsverket Air Navigation Services and Lantmäteriet.

Likewise, Lantmäteriet and Chalmers University reported on their Galileo field-tests on the ability for GNSS equipment to process Galileo signals. According to the researchers, although the tests show that Galileo can already be used, additional testing is needed in order to demonstrate all the benefits of implementing Galileo capabilities. 

Great Expectations

Many participants left noting that they look forward to a close cooperation between infrastructure providers, the user community, research institutes and equipment manufacturers for a cost-effect and smooth implementation of Galileo into professional GNSS applications in Sweden. And although with the launch of Galileo Initial Services comes great expectations from the end users, as can be seen from this seminar, Sweden is well on its way to meeting them. 

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

At this year’s ITS World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) demonstrated the added value that Galileo will bring to intelligent transportation systems, starting with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year.

Galileo took to the global stage at the recent World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) in Melbourne, Australia. In the lead up to the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year, the GSA used the Galileo Village to showcase the programme’s many ITS-related benefits. The stand was organised in conjunction with the Joint European Project for International ITS/EGNSS awareness raising, also known as JUPITER, a Horizon 2020 supported project.

“The goal was to both highlight the many benefits that Galileo will soon offer the ITS sector and to catalyse resources, investments and partnerships, particularly in the Asia Pacific Region, to scale up and really maximise the citizen’s return on investment,” says GSA Officer Alberto Fernández Wyttenbach.

Introducing Galileo to the ITS market

Through project demonstrations and presentations, the GSA showed how public stakeholders and actors in the transportation fields stand to benefit from the improved positioning and navigation performance that Galileo offers. “With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services just several months away, the Galileo Village is a unique opportunity for the JUPITER Project to truly introduce the programme to the ITS market and the Asia Pacific region,” says project coordinator Hanna-Kaisa Saari. “Through these demonstrations and interactions, we were able to directly show visitors the value that Galileo brings to this sector.”

One SME on display at the Village, M3 Systems, specialises in navigation studies, technologies and applications that require accuracy, availability and integrity. As to Galileo, the company is helping define and study Galileo signals and develop performance enhancing algorithms for receivers. One of these, the GNSS Simulator StellaNGC, allows for accurate testing so a user can easily verify positioning performance under varied conditions – of vital importance for companies looking to bring accurate GNSS products to market.

NSL, another British company exhibiting at the Village, are pioneers in the use of European GNSS technologies within the critical markets that directly affect the safety of citizens, national security and the way business is conducted. The company delivers a range of GNSS-based services, systems, solutions and research to ensure one’s positioning and navigation is accurate, reliable, safe and secure. On display at the Village was the company’s DETECTOR product, a GNSS interference detection and characterisation system. By using DETECTOR, GNSS developers and service regulators can test their systems in the presence of captured interferences.

In addition to JUPITER, two other GSA-supported projects were exhibiting at the Village: GNSS.asia and INLANE. GNSS.asia is dedicated to developing and implementing GNSS industrial cooperation between European and Asia Pacific GNSS industries, with a focus on the downstream sector. “Industrial collaboration within the international context of the GNSS downstream sector is becoming increasingly important, particularly as Galileo moves towards operational readiness,” says project coordinator Rainer Horn. 

The INLANE project, on the other hand, is focusing on the prospective autonomous vehicle industry. According to the project, the launch of Galileo Initial Services will be a major step towards achieving the level of accuracy and reliability needed to make the autonomous vehicle a reality. “Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars,” says project coordinator Oihana Otaegui. In this line, the project is working to fuse computer vision with GNSS technologies via dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The project’s products were also featured at the Honda and TomTom booths.

A ride on the Galileo Bus

Beyond the Galileo Village, the ITS World Congress also featured live demonstrations of Galileo’s improved performance. Delegates were able to catch a ride on the Galileo Bus to shuttle back and forth from the event venue to the Albert Park Demo Precinct. The bus was equipped with a Galileo enabled receiver and a Controlled Reception Pattern Antenna (CRPA) that removes the negative impact that signal reflections has on GNSS positioning within an urban environment. The benefits of using Galileo to determine the position of the bus in real time were experienced by around 500 international delegates.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

At this year’s ITS World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) demonstrated the added value that Galileo will bring to intelligent transportation systems, starting with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year.

Galileo took to the global stage at the recent World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) in Melbourne, Australia. In the lead up to the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year, the GSA used the Galileo Village to showcase the programme’s many ITS-related benefits. The stand was organised in conjunction with the Joint European Project for International ITS/EGNSS awareness raising, also known as JUPITER, a Horizon 2020 supported project.

“The goal was to both highlight the many benefits that Galileo will soon offer the ITS sector and to catalyse resources, investments and partnerships, particularly in the Asia Pacific Region, to scale up and really maximise the citizen’s return on investment,” says GSA Officer Alberto Fernández Wyttenbach.

Introducing Galileo to the ITS market

Through project demonstrations and presentations, the GSA showed how public stakeholders and actors in the transportation fields stand to benefit from the improved positioning and navigation performance that Galileo offers. “With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services just several months away, the Galileo Village is a unique opportunity for the JUPITER Project to truly introduce the programme to the ITS market and the Asia Pacific region,” says project coordinator Hanna-Kaisa Saari. “Through these demonstrations and interactions, we were able to directly show visitors the value that Galileo brings to this sector.”

One SME on display at the Village, M3 Systems, specialises in navigation studies, technologies and applications that require accuracy, availability and integrity. As to Galileo, the company is helping define and study Galileo signals and develop performance enhancing algorithms for receivers. One of these, the GNSS Simulator StellaNGC, allows for accurate testing so a user can easily verify positioning performance under varied conditions – of vital importance for companies looking to bring accurate GNSS products to market.

NSL, another British company exhibiting at the Village, are pioneers in the use of European GNSS technologies within the critical markets that directly affect the safety of citizens, national security and the way business is conducted. The company delivers a range of GNSS-based services, systems, solutions and research to ensure one’s positioning and navigation is accurate, reliable, safe and secure. On display at the Village was the company’s DETECTOR product, a GNSS interference detection and characterisation system. By using DETECTOR, GNSS developers and service regulators can test their systems in the presence of captured interferences.

In addition to JUPITER, two other GSA-supported projects were exhibiting at the Village: GNSS.asia and INLANE. GNSS.asia is dedicated to developing and implementing GNSS industrial cooperation between European and Asia Pacific GNSS industries, with a focus on the downstream sector. “Industrial collaboration within the international context of the GNSS downstream sector is becoming increasingly important, particularly as Galileo moves towards operational readiness,” says project coordinator Rainer Horn. 

The INLANE project, on the other hand, is focusing on the prospective autonomous vehicle industry. According to the project, the launch of Galileo Initial Services will be a major step towards achieving the level of accuracy and reliability needed to make the autonomous vehicle a reality. “Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars,” says project coordinator Oihana Otaegui. In this line, the project is working to fuse computer vision with GNSS technologies via dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The project’s products were also featured at the Honda and TomTom booths.

A ride on the Galileo Bus

Beyond the Galileo Village, the ITS World Congress also featured live demonstrations of Galileo’s improved performance. Delegates were able to catch a ride on the Galileo Bus to shuttle back and forth from the event venue to the Albert Park Demo Precinct. The bus was equipped with a Galileo enabled receiver and a Controlled Reception Pattern Antenna (CRPA) that removes the negative impact that signal reflections has on GNSS positioning within an urban environment. The benefits of using Galileo to determine the position of the bus in real time were experienced by around 500 international delegates.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

At this year’s ITS World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) demonstrated the added value that Galileo will bring to intelligent transportation systems, starting with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year.

Galileo took to the global stage at the recent World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) in Melbourne, Australia. In the lead up to the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year, the GSA used the Galileo Village to showcase the programme’s many ITS-related benefits. The stand was organised in conjunction with the Joint European Project for International ITS/EGNSS awareness raising, also known as JUPITER, a Horizon 2020 supported project.

“The goal was to both highlight the many benefits that Galileo will soon offer the ITS sector and to catalyse resources, investments and partnerships, particularly in the Asia Pacific Region, to scale up and really maximise the citizen’s return on investment,” says GSA Officer Alberto Fernández Wyttenbach.

Introducing Galileo to the ITS market

Through project demonstrations and presentations, the GSA showed how public stakeholders and actors in the transportation fields stand to benefit from the improved positioning and navigation performance that Galileo offers. “With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services just several months away, the Galileo Village is a unique opportunity for the JUPITER Project to truly introduce the programme to the ITS market and the Asia Pacific region,” says project coordinator Hanna-Kaisa Saari. “Through these demonstrations and interactions, we were able to directly show visitors the value that Galileo brings to this sector.”

One SME on display at the Village, M3 Systems, specialises in navigation studies, technologies and applications that require accuracy, availability and integrity. As to Galileo, the company is helping define and study Galileo signals and develop performance enhancing algorithms for receivers. One of these, the GNSS Simulator StellaNGC, allows for accurate testing so a user can easily verify positioning performance under varied conditions – of vital importance for companies looking to bring accurate GNSS products to market.

NSL, another British company exhibiting at the Village, are pioneers in the use of European GNSS technologies within the critical markets that directly affect the safety of citizens, national security and the way business is conducted. The company delivers a range of GNSS-based services, systems, solutions and research to ensure one’s positioning and navigation is accurate, reliable, safe and secure. On display at the Village was the company’s DETECTOR product, a GNSS interference detection and characterisation system. By using DETECTOR, GNSS developers and service regulators can test their systems in the presence of captured interferences.

In addition to JUPITER, two other GSA-supported projects were exhibiting at the Village: GNSS.asia and INLANE. GNSS.asia is dedicated to developing and implementing GNSS industrial cooperation between European and Asia Pacific GNSS industries, with a focus on the downstream sector. “Industrial collaboration within the international context of the GNSS downstream sector is becoming increasingly important, particularly as Galileo moves towards operational readiness,” says project coordinator Rainer Horn. 

The INLANE project, on the other hand, is focusing on the prospective autonomous vehicle industry. According to the project, the launch of Galileo Initial Services will be a major step towards achieving the level of accuracy and reliability needed to make the autonomous vehicle a reality. “Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars,” says project coordinator Oihana Otaegui. In this line, the project is working to fuse computer vision with GNSS technologies via dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The project’s products were also featured at the Honda and TomTom booths.

A ride on the Galileo Bus

Beyond the Galileo Village, the ITS World Congress also featured live demonstrations of Galileo’s improved performance. Delegates were able to catch a ride on the Galileo Bus to shuttle back and forth from the event venue to the Albert Park Demo Precinct. The bus was equipped with a Galileo enabled receiver and a Controlled Reception Pattern Antenna (CRPA) that removes the negative impact that signal reflections has on GNSS positioning within an urban environment. The benefits of using Galileo to determine the position of the bus in real time were experienced by around 500 international delegates.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

To maximise the adoption of Galileo and EGNOS, the third Horizon 2020 call focuses on the development of user-oriented, downstream applications. Priority is also given to projects capable of stimulating the competitiveness of the European GNSS downstream industry.

Specifically, the call addresses four European GNSS topics, three within Innovation Action (IA) and the fourth in Coordination and Support Actions (CSA).

GALILEO-1-2017: EGNSS Transport applications (IA): Covering the aviation, road, maritime and rail market segments. Proposals should be built on:

• Exploitation of the EGNSS signals and operational advantages;
• Implementation of EGNSS based pilot projects and end-to-end solutions;
• Standards, certification, legal and societal acceptance;
• Exploitation of synergies with other positioning and navigation systems and techniques.

GALILEO-2-2017: EGNSS mass market applications (IA): Applications that foster the adoption of EGNOS and Galileo in such mass markets as Internet of Things, Smart Cities, Emergency Services and Commercial and Social LBS. Proposals should make the best use of European GNSS’ features that improve performances in urban environments; multi-constellation, fusion with other positioning techniques; Authentication services of Galileo and techniques to optimise the power consumption.

GALILEO-3-2017: EGNSS professional applications (IA): Maximising EGNSS differentiators in such professional segments as agriculture, surveying and mapping, timing and synchronisation and other professional applications. For all the professional areas, the development should be built on:

• Multiple-frequencies E1, E5 and E6;
• Galileo signal modulation, e.g. AltBOC;
• High precision and authentication services that will be provided by Galileo,
• Fusion with other data, such as from earth observation satellites or other in-situ sensors.

GALILEO-4-2017: EGNSS awareness raising and capacity building (CSA): To support the building of industrial relationships, the competitiveness of EU industry and the creation of incentive schemes in order to develop market opportunities and foster the emergence of new downstream applications.

As small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the development of innovative GNSS applications, this call encourages SMEs and entrepreneurs to apply .

Note: the scope of this call does not include proposals addressing applications relating to the Public Regulated Service (PRS).

The details

Horizon 2020 is the European Union’s programme for research and innovation, with a focus on securing Europe’s global competitiveness. The projects coming from this third call will be managed by the GSA per the delegation agreement with the European Commission.
All applications should promote innovation, demonstrate a clear advantage of using Galileo and EGNOS, and include synergies with other GNSS programmes. Proposals should aim at the definition and implementation of pilot projects and development of those European GNSS-enabled applications that are close to the market and driven by user requirements with a high societal benefit and a potential to eventually set common standards in the field of GNSS applications. Proposals should have a clear intention and rationale to commercialise the products and services developed, including a business plan.

The H2020-Galileo-2017-1 Call opened on 8 November 2016 and the final and complete form of proposals must be submitted by 1 March 2017, 17:00:00 (Brussels local time). All applications are evaluated by the external experts at GSA’s headquarters in Prague on the basis of excellence, impact, quality and efficiency of implementation.

For information related to eligibility and admissibility conditions, submission and evaluation process, rules for funding, guide manuals, templates, etc., please visit the official European Commission Participation Portal.

H2020 Space Information Days

As was highlighted at a recent H2020 Space Information Days, held 4 – 5 October in Prague, the first two calls of H2020-Galileo received 194 proposals from 1,409 applicants, with over EUR 65 million awarded to 40 projects. Already these projects are delivering tangible results, with four patents granted, 20 advanced prototypes produced, two products nearing market readiness and 223 scientific papers published.

With the application period happening in parallel with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services, its role within this call was a topic of particular interest. According the GSA, applications should have a special focus on using Initial Services and the real Galileo signal. It was also noted that, when possible, projects should aim to leverage the synergies between GNSS and Copernicus.

Over 200 attended the two day workshop, which included detailed descriptions of the four topics, networking opportunities and success stories from the first two calls. Attendees were also able to ask questions about the submission, financial and evaluation processes.

Presentations can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

To maximise the adoption of Galileo and EGNOS, the third Horizon 2020 call focuses on the development of user-oriented, downstream applications. Priority is also given to projects capable of stimulating the competitiveness of the European GNSS downstream industry.

Specifically, the call addresses four European GNSS topics, three within Innovation Action (IA) and the fourth in Coordination and Support Actions (CSA).

GALILEO-1-2017: EGNSS Transport applications (IA): Covering the aviation, road, maritime and rail market segments. Proposals should be built on:

• Exploitation of the EGNSS signals and operational advantages;
• Implementation of EGNSS based pilot projects and end-to-end solutions;
• Standards, certification, legal and societal acceptance;
• Exploitation of synergies with other positioning and navigation systems and techniques.

GALILEO-2-2017: EGNSS mass market applications (IA): Applications that foster the adoption of EGNOS and Galileo in such mass markets as Internet of Things, Smart Cities, Emergency Services and Commercial and Social LBS. Proposals should make the best use of European GNSS’ features that improve performances in urban environments; multi-constellation, fusion with other positioning techniques; Authentication services of Galileo and techniques to optimise the power consumption.

GALILEO-3-2017: EGNSS professional applications (IA): Maximising EGNSS differentiators in such professional segments as agriculture, surveying and mapping, timing and synchronisation and other professional applications. For all the professional areas, the development should be built on:

• Multiple-frequencies E1, E5 and E6;
• Galileo signal modulation, e.g. AltBOC;
• High precision and authentication services that will be provided by Galileo,
• Fusion with other data, such as from earth observation satellites or other in-situ sensors.

GALILEO-4-2017: EGNSS awareness raising and capacity building (CSA): To support the building of industrial relationships, the competitiveness of EU industry and the creation of incentive schemes in order to develop market opportunities and foster the emergence of new downstream applications.

As small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the development of innovative GNSS applications, this call encourages SMEs and entrepreneurs to apply.

Note:  UK legal entities are eligible to participate and receive fundiing in Horizon 2020 actions.

The scope of this call does not include proposals addressing applications relating to the Public Regulated Service (PRS).

The details

Horizon 2020 is the European Union’s programme for research and innovation, with a focus on securing Europe’s global competitiveness. The projects coming from this third call will be managed by the GSA per the delegation agreement with the European Commission.
All applications should promote innovation, demonstrate a clear advantage of using Galileo and EGNOS, and include synergies with other GNSS programmes. Proposals should aim at the definition and implementation of pilot projects and development of those European GNSS-enabled applications that are close to the market and driven by user requirements with a high societal benefit and a potential to eventually set common standards in the field of GNSS applications. Proposals should have a clear intention and rationale to commercialise the products and services developed, including a business plan.

The H2020-Galileo-2017-1 Call opened on 8 November 2016 and the final and complete form of proposals must be submitted by 1 March 2017, 17:00:00 (Brussels local time). All applications are evaluated by the external experts at GSA’s headquarters in Prague on the basis of excellence, impact, quality and efficiency of implementation.

For information related to eligibility and admissibility conditions, submission and evaluation process, rules for funding, guide manuals, templates, etc., please visit the official European Commission Participation Portal.

H2020 Space Information Days

As was highlighted at a recent H2020 Space Information Days, held 4 – 5 October in Prague, the first two calls of H2020-Galileo received 194 proposals from 1,409 applicants, with over EUR 65 million awarded to 40 projects. Already these projects are delivering tangible results, with four patents granted, 20 advanced prototypes produced, two products nearing market readiness and 223 scientific papers published.

With the application period happening in parallel with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services, its role within this call was a topic of particular interest. According the GSA, applications should have a special focus on using Initial Services and the real Galileo signal. It was also noted that, when possible, projects should aim to leverage the synergies between GNSS and Copernicus.

Over 200 attended the two day workshop, which included detailed descriptions of the four topics, networking opportunities and success stories from the first two calls. Attendees were also able to ask questions about the submission, financial and evaluation processes.

Presentations can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

To maximise the adoption of Galileo and EGNOS, the third Horizon 2020 call focuses on the development of user-oriented, downstream applications. Priority is also given to projects capable of stimulating the competitiveness of the European GNSS downstream industry.

Specifically, the call addresses four European GNSS topics, three within Innovation Action (IA) and the fourth in Coordination and Support Actions (CSA).

GALILEO-1-2017: EGNSS Transport applications (IA): Covering the aviation, road, maritime and rail market segments. Proposals should be built on:

• Exploitation of the EGNSS signals and operational advantages;
• Implementation of EGNSS based pilot projects and end-to-end solutions;
• Standards, certification, legal and societal acceptance;
• Exploitation of synergies with other positioning and navigation systems and techniques.

GALILEO-2-2017: EGNSS mass market applications (IA): Applications that foster the adoption of EGNOS and Galileo in such mass markets as Internet of Things, Smart Cities, Emergency Services and Commercial and Social LBS. Proposals should make the best use of European GNSS’ features that improve performances in urban environments; multi-constellation, fusion with other positioning techniques; Authentication services of Galileo and techniques to optimise the power consumption.

GALILEO-3-2017: EGNSS professional applications (IA): Maximising EGNSS differentiators in such professional segments as agriculture, surveying and mapping, timing and synchronisation and other professional applications. For all the professional areas, the development should be built on:

• Multiple-frequencies E1, E5 and E6;
• Galileo signal modulation, e.g. AltBOC;
• High precision and authentication services that will be provided by Galileo,
• Fusion with other data, such as from earth observation satellites or other in-situ sensors.

GALILEO-4-2017: EGNSS awareness raising and capacity building (CSA): To support the building of industrial relationships, the competitiveness of EU industry and the creation of incentive schemes in order to develop market opportunities and foster the emergence of new downstream applications.

As small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the development of innovative GNSS applications, this call encourages SMEs and entrepreneurs to apply.

Note:  UK legal entities are eligible to participate and receive fundiing in Horizon 2020 actions.

The scope of this call does not include proposals addressing applications relating to the Public Regulated Service (PRS).

The details

Horizon 2020 is the European Union’s programme for research and innovation, with a focus on securing Europe’s global competitiveness. The projects coming from this third call will be managed by the GSA per the delegation agreement with the European Commission.
All applications should promote innovation, demonstrate a clear advantage of using Galileo and EGNOS, and include synergies with other GNSS programmes. Proposals should aim at the definition and implementation of pilot projects and development of those European GNSS-enabled applications that are close to the market and driven by user requirements with a high societal benefit and a potential to eventually set common standards in the field of GNSS applications. Proposals should have a clear intention and rationale to commercialise the products and services developed, including a business plan.

The H2020-Galileo-2017-1 Call opened on 8 November 2016 and the final and complete form of proposals must be submitted by 1 March 2017, 17:00:00 (Brussels local time). All applications are evaluated by the external experts at GSA’s headquarters in Prague on the basis of excellence, impact, quality and efficiency of implementation.

For information related to eligibility and admissibility conditions, submission and evaluation process, rules for funding, guide manuals, templates, etc., please visit the official European Commission Participation Portal.

H2020 Space Information Days

As was highlighted at a recent H2020 Space Information Days, held 4 – 5 October in Prague, the first two calls of H2020-Galileo received 194 proposals from 1,409 applicants, with over EUR 65 million awarded to 40 projects. Already these projects are delivering tangible results, with four patents granted, 20 advanced prototypes produced, two products nearing market readiness and 223 scientific papers published.

With the application period happening in parallel with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services, its role within this call was a topic of particular interest. According the GSA, applications should have a special focus on using Initial Services and the real Galileo signal. It was also noted that, when possible, projects should aim to leverage the synergies between GNSS and Copernicus.

Over 200 attended the two day workshop, which included detailed descriptions of the four topics, networking opportunities and success stories from the first two calls. Attendees were also able to ask questions about the submission, financial and evaluation processes.

Presentations can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The first ever European GNSS Agency (GSA) Galileo Hackathon brought together teams of passionate coders and geo enthusiasts from around the world to compete for some impressive prizes. The venue was Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences on 3 and 4 November during the sixth WhereCamp ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals. All the Hackathon competitors received a Galileo-ready BQ Smartphone and a certificate, while the two winning teams also each collected a €500 cash prize.

WhereCamp Berlin on 3 and 4 November was the place to be for movers and shakers shaping the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Geolocation in Internet of Things). The first Galileo Hackathon was a unique opportunity to showcase coding skills, connect with the Geo-IoT app development community, and to gain a competitive insight on what Galileo LBS will be bringing to the smartphone in your pocket in the very near future.

The Hackathon was open to any individual or small team interested in developing new applications using Galileo: Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The challenge for the hackers was to come up with an innovative application that makes full use of the Galileo’s unique capabilities in less than 24 hours. There were no limitations on the types of applications that could be created.

“The aim of the Hackathon for the GSA is to better engage with the app developer community,” explained Justyna Redelkiewicz from GSA. “With the imminent launch of Galileo Initial Services and the recent initiatives that enable developers to more easily access raw GNSS data on Android phones there are some really exciting opportunities for new and powerful LBS applications.”

There were two main prizes up for grabs: one for the most innovative Galileo-based app and one for the most impactful Galileo-based app.

Dawning of Aquaris

The Hackathon was officially launched with an early afternoon briefing session on 3 November, which included an overview of the Galileo-enabled BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone – the first European smartphone with Galileo capability – and the hardware that the teams would be working with.

Alvaro Fructuoso of BQ described the phone’s capabilities and specification. At the heart of the phone is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chip that provides a true multi-constellation experience. The chip is using Galileo and this ability to access more satellites and better signals means improved location accuracy and faster time to first fix (TTFF).

After the briefing four enthusiastic teams got down to coding business fortified by GSA-supplied pizza and drinks with some teams working literally overnight to brainstorm ideas and then deliver their code. Technical support was available for all the teams through experts from the Joint Research Centre (JRC), BQ and technical universities from Nottingham and Berlin that covered support on both hardware and software levels as well as GNSS and Galileo specific questions.

Following 24 hours of hard work, each team had just five minutes to present their ideas and demonstrate their concept. The teams were judged on a set of criteria that included the level of innovation shown, the impact or potential of the idea, the feasibility and sustainability of the concept, its relevance to Galileo and the amount of progress made during the Hackathon.

The first team to present was ‘Galileo 7’ with team members Dierk Eichel, Damien Michaudet and Jan De Vries their idea was a Pokemon Go type game called ‘GrossStadtWild Go’ where players could monitor and tag the wildlife they encounter in urban environments. The game had a social networking aspect in that it enabled users to exchange information on the location of wild animals in their city.

Second on stage was a multi-national team called ‘Rovers_Movers’ with a trio of members from three different continents: Tarun Devrant from India, Friedger Müffke of Germany, and Diana M. Cerviño from Venezuela. Their app - Life Watch – aimed to safeguard neighbourhoods by creating citizen awareness and rewarding action for the public good. The improved accuracy of Galileo could enable a quicker and more accurate response to any suspicious event in the area.

Third to present was the team that created the ‘Didactic Disco’ app, consisting of five members: Wolfhard Fehre, Stephan Brandt, Niklas Bartz, Tobias Seydewite and Daniel Hatton-Johnson. Their app was a multi-player game for drawing on maps that used player movements in an urban environment to create images. The app - demonstrated live - combined social networking and mapping.

Last to demonstrate their work was team ‘Semicolon’ with team members Mohammed Elsharif and Kazunari Okuda. Their proto-app was called Otoko that means ”a man” in Japanese. This app focused on the added value of Galileo in terms of precision in positioning and was a voice-assisted guidance concept for blind or visually impaired citizens.

Rovers_Movers team - developers of Life Watch

Innovation and Impact

A seven person judging panel consisted of Cristina Comunian from GSA, Jacopo Ovarelli from Alpha Consult, Michele Bavaro from JRC, Lukasz Bonenberg from Nottingham University, Mark Lützner of Spacetec, and Alvaro Fructuoso and Olaja Segovia from BQ.

After some serious deliberation the winners were announced at the penultimate session of the Wherecamp event just before lunch on 4 November. GSA’s Justyna Redelkiewicz introduced the jury and praised all the competing teams - it had been a tough decision.

The winner of the most innovative app was announced by Alvaro Fructuoso of BQ with the prize going to the Didactic Disco multi-player map game. He described the app as “a fun map drawing game, but one that had potential for serious use too.”

Cristina Comunian of GSA proclaimed the Rovers_Movers team’s neighbourhood watch app as the concept with most potential to make an impact on society saying that the app “could help bring communities together again - it was great that Galileo can enable this sort of thing.”

Congratulations to all the winners and competitors! The event was a great success and plans are in hand for a second Hackathon in the near future. More details soon!

“The first Galileo Hackathon was a unique opportunity to showcase coding skills and connect with the Geo-IoT app development community.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The first ever European GNSS Agency (GSA) Galileo Hackathon brought together teams of passionate coders and geo enthusiasts from around the world to compete for some impressive prizes. The venue was Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences on 3 and 4 November during the sixth WhereCamp ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals. All the Hackathon competitors received a Galileo-ready BQ Smartphone and a certificate, while the two winning teams also each collected a €500 cash prize.

WhereCamp Berlin on 3 and 4 November was the place to be for movers and shakers shaping the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Geolocation in Internet of Things). The first Galileo Hackathon was a unique opportunity to showcase coding skills, connect with the Geo-IoT app development community, and to gain a competitive insight on what Galileo LBS will be bringing to the smartphone in your pocket in the very near future.

The Hackathon was open to any individual or small team interested in developing new applications using Galileo: Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The challenge for the hackers was to come up with an innovative application that makes full use of the Galileo’s unique capabilities in less than 24 hours. There were no limitations on the types of applications that could be created.

“The aim of the Hackathon for the GSA is to better engage with the app developer community,” explained Justyna Redelkiewicz from GSA. “With the imminent launch of Galileo Initial Services and the recent initiatives that enable developers to more easily access raw GNSS data on Android phones there are some really exciting opportunities for new and powerful LBS applications.”

There were two main prizes up for grabs: one for the most innovative Galileo-based app and one for the most impactful Galileo-based app.

Dawning of Aquaris

The Hackathon was officially launched with an early afternoon briefing session on 3 November, which included an overview of the Galileo-enabled BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone – the first European smartphone with Galileo capability – and the hardware that the teams would be working with.

Alvaro Fructuoso of BQ described the phone’s capabilities and specification. At the heart of the phone is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chip that provides a true multi-constellation experience. The chip is using Galileo and this ability to access more satellites and better signals means improved location accuracy and faster time to first fix (TTFF).

After the briefing four enthusiastic teams got down to coding business fortified by GSA-supplied pizza and drinks with some teams working literally overnight to brainstorm ideas and then deliver their code. Technical support was available for all the teams through experts from the Joint Research Centre (JRC), BQ and technical universities from Nottingham and Berlin that covered support on both hardware and software levels as well as GNSS and Galileo specific questions.

Following 24 hours of hard work, each team had just five minutes to present their ideas and demonstrate their concept. The teams were judged on a set of criteria that included the level of innovation shown, the impact or potential of the idea, the feasibility and sustainability of the concept, its relevance to Galileo and the amount of progress made during the Hackathon.

The first team to present was ‘Galileo 7’ with team members Dierk Eichel, Damien Michaudet and Jan De Vries their idea was a Pokemon Go type game called ‘WhereWild’ where players could monitor and tag the wildlife they encounter in urban environments. The game had a social networking aspect in that it enabled users to exchange information on the location of wild animals in their city.

Second on stage was a multi-national team called ‘Rovers_Movers’ with a trio of members from three different continents: Tarun Devrant from India, Friedger Müffke of Germany, and Diana M. Cerviño from Venezuela. Their app - Life Watch – aimed to safeguard neighbourhoods by creating citizen awareness and rewarding action for the public good. The improved accuracy of Galileo could enable a quicker and more accurate response to any suspicious event in the area.

Third to present was the Didactic Disco team that created the ‘Disco Draw’ app, consisting of five members: Wolfhard Fehre, Stephan Brandt, Niklas Bartz, Tobias Seydewite and Daniel Hatton-Johnson. Their app was a multi-player game for drawing on maps that used player movements in an urban environment to create images. The app - demonstrated live - combined social networking and mapping.

Last to demonstrate their work was team ‘Semicolon’ with team members Mohammed Elsharif and Kazunari Okuda. Their proto-app was called Otoko that means ”a man” in Japanese. This app focused on the added value of Galileo in terms of precision in positioning and was a voice-assisted guidance concept for blind or visually impaired citizens.

Rovers_Movers team - developers of Life Watch

Innovation and Impact

A seven person judging panel consisted of Cristina Comunian from GSA, Jacopo Ovarelli from Alpha Consult, Michele Bavaro from JRC, Lukasz Bonenberg from Nottingham University, Mark Lützner of Spacetec, and Alvaro Fructuoso and Olaja Segovia from BQ.

After some serious deliberation the winners were announced at the penultimate session of the Wherecamp event just before lunch on 4 November. GSA’s Justyna Redelkiewicz introduced the jury and praised all the competing teams - it had been a tough decision.

The winner of the most innovative app was announced by Alvaro Fructuoso of BQ with the prize going to the Didactic Disco multi-player map game. He described the app as “a fun map drawing game, but one that had potential for serious use too.”

Cristina Comunian of GSA proclaimed the Rovers_Movers team’s neighbourhood watch app as the concept with most potential to make an impact on society saying that the app “could help bring communities together again - it was great that Galileo can enable this sort of thing.”

Congratulations to all the winners and competitors! The event was a great success and plans are in hand for a second Hackathon in the near future. More details soon!

“The first Galileo Hackathon was a unique opportunity to showcase coding skills and connect with the Geo-IoT app development community.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The first ever European GNSS Agency (GSA) Galileo Hackathon brought together teams of passionate coders and geo enthusiasts from around the world to compete for some impressive prizes. The venue was Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences on 3 and 4 November during the sixth WhereCamp ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals. All the Hackathon competitors received a Galileo-ready BQ Smartphone and a certificate, while the two winning teams also each collected a €500 cash prize.

WhereCamp Berlin on 3 and 4 November was the place to be for movers and shakers shaping the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Geolocation in Internet of Things). The first Galileo Hackathon was a unique opportunity to showcase coding skills, connect with the Geo-IoT app development community, and to gain a competitive insight on what Galileo LBS will be bringing to the smartphone in your pocket in the very near future.

The Hackathon was open to any individual or small team interested in developing new applications using Galileo: Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The challenge for the hackers was to come up with an innovative application that makes full use of the Galileo’s unique capabilities in less than 24 hours. There were no limitations on the types of applications that could be created.

“The aim of the Hackathon for the GSA is to better engage with the app developer community,” explained Justyna Redelkiewicz from GSA. “With the imminent launch of Galileo Initial Services and the recent initiatives that enable developers to more easily access raw GNSS data on Android phones there are some really exciting opportunities for new and powerful LBS applications.”

There were two main prizes up for grabs: one for the most innovative Galileo-based app and one for the most impactful Galileo-based app.

Dawning of Aquaris

The Hackathon was officially launched with an early afternoon briefing session on 3 November, which included an overview of the Galileo-enabled BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone – the first European smartphone with Galileo capability – and the hardware that the teams would be working with.

Alvaro Fructuoso of BQ described the phone’s capabilities and specification. At the heart of the phone is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chip that provides a true multi-constellation experience. The chip is using Galileo and this ability to access more satellites and better signals means improved location accuracy and faster time to first fix (TTFF).

After the briefing four enthusiastic teams got down to coding business fortified by GSA-supplied pizza and drinks with some teams working literally overnight to brainstorm ideas and then deliver their code. Technical support was available for all the teams through experts from the Joint Research Centre (JRC), BQ and technical universities from Nottingham and Berlin that covered support on both hardware and software levels as well as GNSS and Galileo specific questions.

Following 24 hours of hard work, each team had just five minutes to present their ideas and demonstrate their concept. The teams were judged on a set of criteria that included the level of innovation shown, the impact or potential of the idea, the feasibility and sustainability of the concept, its relevance to Galileo and the amount of progress made during the Hackathon.

The first team to present was ‘Galileo 7’ with team members Dierk Eichel, Damien Michaudet and Jan De Vries their idea was a Pokemon Go type game called ‘GrossStadtWild Go’ where players could monitor and tag the wildlife they encounter in urban environments. The game had a social networking aspect in that it enabled users to exchange information on the location of wild animals in their city.

Second on stage was a multi-national team called ‘Rovers_Movers’ with a trio of members from three different continents: Tarun Devrant from India, Friedger Müffke of Germany, and Diana M. Cerviño from Venezuela. Their app - Life Watch – aimed to safeguard neighbourhoods by creating citizen awareness and rewarding action for the public good. The improved accuracy of Galileo could enable a quicker and more accurate response to any suspicious event in the area.

Third to present was the team that created the ‘Didactic Disco’ app, consisting of five members: Wolfhard Fehre, Stephan Brandt, Niklas Bartz, Tobias Seydewite and Daniel Hatton-Johnson. Their app was a multi-player game for drawing on maps that used player movements in an urban environment to create images. The app - demonstrated live - combined social networking and mapping.

Last to demonstrate their work was team ‘Semicolon’ with team members Mohammed Elsharif and Kazunari Okuda. Their proto-app was called Otoko that means ”a man” in Japanese. This app focused on the added value of Galileo in terms of precision in positioning and was a voice-assisted guidance concept for blind or visually impaired citizens.

Rovers_Movers team - developers of Life Watch

Innovation and Impact

A seven person judging panel consisted of Cristina Comunian from GSA, Jacopo Ovarelli from Alpha Consult, Michele Bavaro from JRC, Lukasz Bonenberg from Nottingham University, Mark Lützner of Spacetec, and Alvaro Fructuoso and Olaja Segovia from BQ.

After some serious deliberation the winners were announced at the penultimate session of the Wherecamp event just before lunch on 4 November. GSA’s Justyna Redelkiewicz introduced the jury and praised all the competing teams - it had been a tough decision.

The winner of the most innovative app was announced by Alvaro Fructuoso of BQ with the prize going to the Didactic Disco multi-player map game. He described the app as “a fun map drawing game, but one that had potential for serious use too.”

Cristina Comunian of GSA proclaimed the Rovers_Movers team’s neighbourhood watch app as the concept with most potential to make an impact on society saying that the app “could help bring communities together again - it was great that Galileo can enable this sort of thing.”

Congratulations to all the winners and competitors! The event was a great success and plans are in hand for a second Hackathon in the near future. More details soon!

“The first Galileo Hackathon was a unique opportunity to showcase coding skills and connect with the Geo-IoT app development community.”

More information:

WhereCamp
BQ Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone
Qualcomm

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services coming soon, the first European Galileo-ready smartphone is now operational.

The Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone, the first European Galileo-ready smartphones and produced by the Spanish technology company BQ, is now officially Galileo-capable. Following a firmware update released this week, users can now access the Galileo signal via the phone’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor. To activate Galileo on the Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone, one only has to upgrade to the latest firmware version. 

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the Location Based Services (LBS) community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. “I am glad to see Galileo is taking off in the smartphone arena,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The key to Galileo’s success in this market is to ensure its update by LBS device manufacturers, and we are excited that a European smartphone manufacturer is pioneering the use of Galileo for enhanced LBS solutions.”

Leveraging Galileo’s Capabilities

To shape the future of Location Based Services and leverage the power of Galileo, this week Europe’s leading coders are competing in the first Galileo Hackathon. During the two-day event, coders will be the first to use the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus’ Galileo-enabled firmware to come up with innovative applications that make full use of Galileo’s numerous capabilities. The Hackathon is happening November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. 

About the Aquaris X5 Plus Smartphone

The next-generation Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone comes equipped with a 3,200 mAh battery, Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 Octa Core processor, up to 1.8 GHz and an Adreno 510 graphic processor of up to 550 MHz. It features a 16 Mpx back camera, Sony IMX298 sensor, f/2.0 dual tone flash and phase detection focus, along with a Sony IMX219 sensor-equipped 8 Mpx front camera. The phone offers 4K video recording, video stabilizer, fingerprint scanner and NFC.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services coming soon, the first European Galileo-ready smartphone is now operational.

The Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone, the first European Galileo-ready smartphones and produced by the Spanish technology company BQ, is now officially Galileo-capable. Following a firmware update released this week, users can now access the Galileo signal via the phone’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor. To activate Galileo on the Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone, one only has to upgrade to the latest firmware version. 

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the Location Based Services (LBS) community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. “I am glad to see Galileo is taking off in the smartphone arena,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “The key to Galileo’s success in this market is to ensure its update by LBS device manufacturers, and we are excited that a European smartphone manufacturer is pioneering the use of Galileo for enhanced LBS solutions.”

Leveraging Galileo’s Capabilities

To shape the future of Location Based Services and leverage the power of Galileo, this week Europe’s leading coders are competing in the first Galileo Hackathon. During the two-day event, coders will be the first to use the BQ Aquaris X5 Plus’ Galileo-enabled firmware to come up with innovative applications that make full use of Galileo’s numerous capabilities. The Hackathon is happening November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. 

About the Aquaris X5 Plus Smartphone

The next-generation Aquaris X5 Plus smartphone comes equipped with a 3,200 mAh battery, Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 Octa Core processor, up to 1.8 GHz and an Adreno 510 graphic processor of up to 550 MHz. It features a 16 Mpx back camera, Sony IMX298 sensor, f/2.0 dual tone flash and phase detection focus, along with a Sony IMX219 sensor-equipped 8 Mpx front camera. The phone offers 4K video recording, video stabilizer, fingerprint scanner and NFC.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

26 October was a momentous day for the European space sector with the adoption of the first truly comprehensive Space Strategy for Europe by the European Commission. The strategy sets out an ambitious vison for the future of space activities in Europe with its underlining message that ‘Space matters for Europe’. To celebrate this event a launch ceremony was held in the European Space Expo in Brussels, which has just completed a four-year tour around Europe.

European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič opened the high level event stressing that “Space is important for Europe and for European citizens.” He was pleased to see so many people celebrating the new EU Space Strategy and said that it gave new momentum to the whole space sector.

Space matters

European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Elżbieta Bieńkowska, noted that this was the first time that the EU had developed such a comprehensive strategy for space. She said that the policy “builds on our respective strengths and strategies” and stressed the simple message that “space matters” for all of us.

The Space Strategy for Europe responds to growing global competition, increasing private sector involvement and major technological shifts. The Commission strategy proposes a range of actions to allow Europeans to fully seize the benefits offered by space, create the right ecosystem for space start-ups to grow, promote Europe's leadership in space and increase its share on the world space markets. The strategy will foster a competitive and innovative European space sector and maintain Europe's strategic autonomy while strengthening its global role in space.

In particular with the Galileo and Copernicus programmes becoming operational, there was a need to shift to concrete applications based on space data said Commissioner Bieńkowska. It was essential that the EU’s world class space industry remained competitive and that we are able to maximise the benefits from space for the whole of society.

GSA role

Of course the European GNSS Agency (GSA) has a major role to play in delivering and implementing the new Space Strategy across its four main priorities and in particular in terms of maximising the benefits of space for society and the EU economy, and fostering a globally competitive and innovative European space sector.

“The GSA welcomes and fully supports the new European Space Strategy,” said Carlo des Dorides, Executive Director of the GSA. “The Commission has confirmed the continuity of the systems and their operations, including the development of a third generation of EGNOS and a second generation of Galileo. With the imminent declaration of Galileo Initial Services by the Commission, and the provision of EGNOS Services since 2014, the GSA is working hard to ensure end-to-end GNSS service provision.  Through this we ensure that the EU’s investment in space is realised and available for the benefit of European society as a whole.”

Both members of the Commission recognised the contributions and collaboration of the European Space Agency (ESA). ESA Director General Johann-Dietrich Wörner said that the strategy represented the “start of a future journey for Europe.” He looked forward to a “United Space in Europe” where the added-value in space-based solutions can be demonstrated to benefit the whole of society.

Industry perspective

The implications of the new space strategy were discussed by a panel of representatives of the European aerospace industry large and small.

Luigi Pasquali, of Telespazio said that the strategy was an important framework for his company and the emphasis on delivery was essential. Stéphane Israël, of Arianespace agreed. For him the strategy was exhaustive and succeeded in bring space down to earth. It had the “right vision and new ambitions.” In particular he thought that autonomous access to space was essential for competitiveness.

Three entrepreneurs voiced the views of the dynamic SME segment in the space sector. John Smedegaard of Fieldsense, Winner of the Copernicus Masters competition in 2014 described himself as a “child of EU and ESA support” and said that the strategy with its increased focus on innovation inspires him to continue.

Rafael Olmedo from Geko Navsat, who has won the GSA Special Topic Prize in the European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC aka the Galileo Masters) twice, also completely identified with the strategy, seeing it as an opportunity to create business innovation. Finally Enrique Martinez of Sincratech, winner of the ESNC in 2014 also liked the strategy saying that its publication had resolved many outstanding doubts.

Wrapping up proceedings, Vice President Šefčovič thanked the contributors for their strong sense of support and team spirit for cooperation on space. Commissioner Bieńkowksa said the strategy showed the way ahead and she looked forward to working together to implement and deliver the policies.

“A perfect day” is how Jean-Yves Le Gall, who wears many hats as President of the French Space Agency (CNES), co-Chair of the ESA Council, and newly elected Chair of the GSA Administrative Board, commented on the event. He praised the personal commitments of the commissioners to the Space Strategy and said that its “priorities are matched to needs of the space sector” and the “result is a model of balance and clarity.” He looked forward to joint efforts in the future that would demonstrate that “space is Europe’s best achievement.”

One in a million

To complete the event, a certificate was presented to the millionth visitor to the European Space Expo: Laura Simon. The milestone had been achieved during the Expo’s last opening in Brussels. The European Space Expo visited 32 European cities during its four-year tour and presented its fascinating interactive exhibits to citizens in 19 different languages.

“Space is Europe’s best achievement.”

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

More information:

Space Strategy for Europe
European Space Expo
ESNC

26 October was a momentous day for the European space sector with the adoption of the first truly comprehensive Space Strategy for Europe by the European Commission. The strategy sets out an ambitious vison for the future of space activities in Europe with its underlining message that ‘Space matters for Europe’. To celebrate this event a launch ceremony was held in the European Space Expo in Brussels, which has just completed a four-year tour around Europe.

European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič opened the high level event stressing that “Space is important for Europe and for European citizens.” He was pleased to see so many people celebrating the new EU Space Strategy and said that it gave new momentum to the whole space sector.

Space matters

European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Elżbieta Bieńkowska, noted that this was the first time that the EU had developed such a comprehensive strategy for space. She said that the policy “builds on our respective strengths and strategies” and stressed the simple message that “space matters” for all of us.

The Space Strategy for Europe responds to growing global competition, increasing private sector involvement and major technological shifts. The Commission strategy proposes a range of actions to allow Europeans to fully seize the benefits offered by space, create the right ecosystem for space start-ups to grow, promote Europe's leadership in space and increase its share on the world space markets. The strategy will foster a competitive and innovative European space sector and maintain Europe's strategic autonomy while strengthening its global role in space.

In particular with the Galileo and Copernicus programmes becoming operational, there was a need to shift to concrete applications based on space data said Commissioner Bieńkowska. It was essential that the EU’s world class space industry remained competitive and that we are able to maximise the benefits from space for the whole of society.

GSA role

Of course the European GNSS Agency (GSA) has a major role to play in delivering and implementing the new Space Strategy across its four main priorities and in particular in terms of maximising the benefits of space for society and the EU economy, and fostering a globally competitive and innovative European space sector.

“The GSA welcomes and fully supports the new European Space Strategy,” said Carlo des Dorides, Executive Director of the GSA. “The Commission has confirmed the continuity of the systems and their operations, including the development of a third generation of EGNOS and a second generation of Galileo. With the imminent declaration of Galileo Initial Services by the Commission, and the provision of EGNOS Services since 2014, the GSA is working hard to ensure end-to-end GNSS service provision.  Through this we ensure that the EU’s investment in space is realised and available for the benefit of European society as a whole.”

Both members of the Commission recognised the contributions and collaboration of the European Space Agency (ESA). ESA Director General Johann-Dietrich Wörner said that the strategy represented the “start of a future journey for Europe.” He looked forward to a “United Space in Europe” where the added-value in space-based solutions can be demonstrated to benefit the whole of society.

Industry perspective

The implications of the new space strategy were discussed by a panel of representatives of the European aerospace industry large and small.

Luigi Pasquali, of Telespazio said that the strategy was an important framework for his company and the emphasis on delivery was essential. Stéphane Israël, of Arianespace agreed. For him the strategy was exhaustive and succeeded in bring space down to earth. It had the “right vision and new ambitions.” In particular he thought that autonomous access to space was essential for competitiveness.

Three entrepreneurs voiced the views of the dynamic SME segment in the space sector. John Smedegaard of Fieldsense, Winner of the Copernicus Masters competition in 2014 described himself as a “child of EU and ESA support” and said that the strategy with its increased focus on innovation inspires him to continue.

Rafael Olmedo from Geko Navsat, who has won the GSA Special Topic Prize in the European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC aka the Galileo Masters) twice, also completely identified with the strategy, seeing it as an opportunity to create business innovation. Finally Enrique Martinez of Sincratech, winner of the ESNC in 2014 also liked the strategy saying that its publication had resolved many outstanding doubts.

Wrapping up proceedings, Vice President Šefčovič thanked the contributors for their strong sense of support and team spirit for cooperation on space. Commissioner Bieńkowksa said the strategy showed the way ahead and she looked forward to working together to implement and deliver the policies.

“A perfect day” is how Jean-Yves Le Gall, who wears many hats as President of the French Space Agency (CNES), co-Chair of the ESA Council, and newly elected Chair of the GSA Administrative Board, commented on the event. He praised the personal commitments of the commissioners to the Space Strategy and said that its “priorities are matched to needs of the space sector” and the “result is a model of balance and clarity.” He looked forward to joint efforts in the future that would demonstrate that “space is Europe’s best achievement.”

One in a million

To complete the event, a certificate was presented to the millionth visitor to the European Space Expo: Laura Simon. The milestone had been achieved during the Expo’s last opening in Brussels. The European Space Expo visited 32 European cities during its four-year tour and presented its fascinating interactive exhibits to citizens in 19 different languages.

“Space is Europe’s best achievement.”

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

More information:

Space Strategy for Europe
European Space Expo
ESNC

26 October was a momentous day for the European space sector with the adoption of the first truly comprehensive Space Strategy for Europe by the European Commission. The strategy sets out an ambitious vison for the future of space activities in Europe with its underlining message that ‘Space matters for Europe’. To celebrate this event a launch ceremony was held in the European Space Expo in Brussels, which has just completed a four-year tour around Europe.

European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič opened the high level event stressing that “Space is important for Europe and for European citizens.” He was pleased to see so many people celebrating the new EU Space Strategy and said that it gave new momentum to the whole space sector.

Space matters

European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Elżbieta Bieńkowska, noted that this was the first time that the EU had developed such a comprehensive strategy for space. She said that the policy “builds on our respective strengths and strategies” and stressed the simple message that “space matters” for all of us.

The Space Strategy for Europe responds to growing global competition, increasing private sector involvement and major technological shifts. The Commission strategy proposes a range of actions to allow Europeans to fully seize the benefits offered by space, create the right ecosystem for space start-ups to grow, promote Europe's leadership in space and increase its share on the world space markets. The strategy will foster a competitive and innovative European space sector and maintain Europe's strategic autonomy while strengthening its global role in space.

In particular with the Galileo and Copernicus programmes becoming operational, there was a need to shift to concrete applications based on space data said Commissioner Bieńkowska. It was essential that the EU’s world class space industry remained competitive and that we are able to maximise the benefits from space for the whole of society.

GSA role

Of course the European GNSS Agency (GSA) has a major role to play in delivering and implementing the new Space Strategy across its four main priorities and in particular in terms of maximising the benefits of space for society and the EU economy, and fostering a globally competitive and innovative European space sector.

“The GSA welcomes and fully supports the new European Space Strategy,” said Carlo des Dorides, Executive Director of the GSA. “The Commission has confirmed the continuity of the systems and their operations, including the development of a third generation of EGNOS and a second generation of Galileo. With the imminent declaration of Galileo Initial Services by the Commission, and the provision of EGNOS Services since 2014, the GSA is working hard to ensure end-to-end GNSS service provision.  Through this we ensure that the EU’s investment in space is realised and available for the benefit of European society as a whole.”

Both members of the Commission recognised the contributions and collaboration of the European Space Agency (ESA). ESA Director General Johann-Dietrich Wörner said that the strategy represented the “start of a future journey for Europe.” He looked forward to a “United Space in Europe” where the added-value in space-based solutions can be demonstrated to benefit the whole of society.

Industry perspective

The implications of the new space strategy were discussed by a panel of representatives of the European aerospace industry large and small.

Luigi Pasquali, of Telespazio said that the strategy was an important framework for his company and the emphasis on delivery was essential. Stéphane Israël, of Arianespace agreed. For him the strategy was exhaustive and succeeded in bring space down to earth. It had the “right vision and new ambitions.” In particular he thought that autonomous access to space was essential for competitiveness.

Three entrepreneurs voiced the views of the dynamic SME segment in the space sector. John Smedegaard of Fieldsense, Winner of the Copernicus Masters competition in 2014 described himself as a “child of EU and ESA support” and said that the strategy with its increased focus on innovation inspires him to continue.

Rafael Olmedo from Geko Navsat, who has won the GSA Special Topic Prize in the European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC aka the Galileo Masters) twice, also completely identified with the strategy, seeing it as an opportunity to create business innovation. Finally Enrique Martinez of Sincratech, winner of the ESNC in 2014 also liked the strategy saying that its publication had resolved many outstanding doubts.

Wrapping up proceedings, Vice President Šefčovič thanked the contributors for their strong sense of support and team spirit for cooperation on space. Commissioner Bieńkowksa said the strategy showed the way ahead and she looked forward to working together to implement and deliver the policies.

“A perfect day” is how Jean-Yves Le Gall, who wears many hats as President of the French Space Agency (CNES), co-Chair of the ESA Council, and newly elected Chair of the GSA Administrative Board, commented on the event. He praised the personal commitments of the commissioners to the Space Strategy and said that its “priorities are matched to needs of the space sector” and the “result is a model of balance and clarity.” He looked forward to joint efforts in the future that would demonstrate that “space is Europe’s best achievement.”

One in a million

To complete the event, a certificate was presented to the millionth visitor to the European Space Expo: Laura Simon. The milestone had been achieved during the Expo’s last opening in Brussels. The European Space Expo visited 32 European cities during its four-year tour and presented its fascinating interactive exhibits to citizens in 19 different languages.

“Space is Europe’s best achievement.”

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

More information:

Space Strategy for Europe
European Space Expo
ESNC

At this year’s ITS World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) demonstrated the added value that Galileo will bring to intelligent transportation systems, starting with the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year.

Galileo took to the global stage at the recent World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) in Melbourne, Australia. In the lead up to the declaration of Galileo Initial Services later this year, the GSA used the Galileo Village to showcase the programme’s many ITS-related benefits. The stand was organised in conjunction with the Joint European Project for International ITS/EGNSS awareness raising, also known as JUPITER, a Horizon 2020 supported project.

“The goal was to both highlight the many benefits that Galileo will soon offer the ITS sector and to catalyse resources, investments and partnerships, particularly in the Asia Pacific Region, to scale up and really maximise the citizen’s return on investment,” says GSA Officer Alberto Fernández Wyttenbach.

Introducing Galileo to the ITS market

Through project demonstrations and presentations, the GSA showed how public stakeholders and actors in the transportation fields stand to benefit from the improved positioning and navigation performance that Galileo offers. “With the Declaration of Galileo Initial Services just several months away, the Galileo Village is a unique opportunity for the JUPITER Project to truly introduce the programme to the ITS market and the Asia Pacific region,” says project coordinator Hanna-Kaisa Saari. “Through these demonstrations and interactions, we were able to directly show visitors the value that Galileo brings to this sector.”

One SME on display at the Village, M3 Systems, specialises in navigation studies, technologies and applications that require accuracy, availability and integrity. As to Galileo, the company is helping define and study Galileo signals and develop performance enhancing algorithms for receivers. One of these, the GNSS Simulator StellaNGC, allows for accurate testing so a user can easily verify positioning performance under varied conditions – of vital importance for companies looking to bring accurate GNSS products to market.

NSL, another British company exhibiting at the Village, are pioneers in the use of European GNSS technologies within the critical markets that directly affect the safety of citizens, national security and the way business is conducted. The company delivers a range of GNSS-based services, systems, solutions and research to ensure one’s positioning and navigation is accurate, reliable, safe and secure. On display at the Village was the company’s DETECTOR product, a GNSS interference detection and characterisation system. By using DETECTOR, GNSS developers and service regulators can test their systems in the presence of captured interferences.

In addition to JUPITER, two other GSA-supported projects were exhibiting at the Village: GNSS.asia and INLANE. GNSS.asia is dedicated to developing and implementing GNSS industrial cooperation between European and Asia Pacific GNSS industries, with a focus on the downstream sector. “Industrial collaboration within the international context of the GNSS downstream sector is becoming increasingly important, particularly as Galileo moves towards operational readiness,” says project coordinator Rainer Horn. 

The INLANE project, on the other hand, is focusing on the prospective autonomous vehicle industry. According to the project, the launch of Galileo Initial Services will be a major step towards achieving the level of accuracy and reliability needed to make the autonomous vehicle a reality. “Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars,” says project coordinator Oihana Otaegui. In this line, the project is working to fuse computer vision with GNSS technologies via dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The project’s products were also featured at the Honda and TomTom booths.

A ride on the Galileo Bus

Beyond the Galileo Village, the ITS World Congress also featured live demonstrations of Galileo’s improved performance. Delegates were able to catch a ride on the Galileo Bus to shuttle back and forth from the event venue to the Albert Park Demo Precinct. The bus was equipped with a Galileo enabled receiver and a Controlled Reception Pattern Antenna (CRPA) that removes the negative impact that signal reflections has on GNSS positioning within an urban environment. The benefits of using Galileo to determine the position of the bus in real time were experienced by around 500 international delegates.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

V pátek 2. prosince a v sobotu 3. prosince, ústředí GSA v Praze bude otevřeno pro veřejnost už druhý rok v řadě a poskytne unikátní příležitost nahlédnout do služeb spojených s Evropskými satelitními navigačními systémy a s lidmi, kteří stojí za jejich existencí.

Během Dnů otevřených dveří budete cestovat mezi vesmírem a obchodem v České republice.

Toto je skvělá příležitost poslechnout si prezentace českých partnerů GSA, kteří se zúčastnili našich výzkumných a vývojových projektů! Dozvíte se více o práci GSA a zjistíte, jak Evropská unie využívá vesmír a jaký má satelitní navigace vliv na náš každodenní život.

Program také zahrnuje zajímavé semináře, soutěže, výstavy, animační aktivity pro rodiny s dětmi, činnosti pro školy a jiné zábavné aktivity! Přijďte nás navštívit a uvidíte model jednoho ze satelitů systému Galileo v různých konfiguracích, vyfotíte se ve vesmíru, zkusíte přistát s pomocí satelitní navigace a můžete vyhrát ceny.

Program Dnů otevřených dveří najdete zde.

Pokud chcete přijít jako školní návštěva, zaregistrujte se zde, nebo nám napište na tuto adresu: gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu

Těšíme se na vaši návštěvu.

Sledujte naše novinky týkající se Dnů otevřených dveří na Twitteru, na adrese @EU_GNSS.

Pokud chcete psát o Dnech otevřených dveří, prosíme, použijte #GSAOpendays.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

V pátek 2. prosince a v sobotu 3. prosince, ústředí GSA v Praze bude otevřeno pro veřejnost už druhý rok v řadě a poskytne unikátní příležitost nahlédnout do služeb spojených s Evropskými satelitními navigačními systémy a s lidmi, kteří stojí za jejich existencí.

Během Dnů otevřených dveří budete cestovat mezi vesmírem a obchodem v České republice.

Toto je skvělá příležitost poslechnout si prezentace českých partnerů GSA, kteří se zúčastnili našich výzkumných a vývojových projektů! Dozvíte se více o práci GSA a zjistíte, jak Evropská unie využívá vesmír a jaký má satelitní navigace vliv na náš každodenní život.

Program také zahrnuje zajímavé semináře, soutěže, výstavy, animační aktivity pro rodiny s dětmi, činnosti pro školy a jiné zábavné aktivity! Přijďte nás navštívit a uvidíte model jednoho ze satelitů systému Galileo v různých konfiguracích, vyfotíte se ve vesmíru, zkusíte přistát s pomocí satelitní navigace a můžete vyhrát ceny.

Program Dnů otevřených dveří najdete zde.

Pokud chcete přijít jako školní návštěva, zaregistrujte se zde, nebo nám napište na tuto adresu: gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu

Těšíme se na vaši návštěvu.

Sledujte naše novinky týkající se Dnů otevřených dveří na Twitteru, na adrese @EU_GNSS.

Pokud chcete psát o Dnech otevřených dveří, prosíme, použijte #GSAOpendays.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        
Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives. 

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.       
Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

V pátek 2. prosince a v sobotu 3. prosince, ústředí GSA v Praze bude otevřeno pro veřejnost už druhý rok v řadě a poskytne unikátní příležitost nahlédnout do služeb spojených s Evropskými satelitními navigačními systémy a s lidmi, kteří stojí za jejich existencí.

Během Dnů otevřených dveří budete cestovat mezi vesmírem a obchodem v České republice.

Toto je skvělá příležitost poslechnout si prezentace českých partnerů GSA, kteří se zúčastnili našich výzkumných a vývojových projektů! Dozvíte se více o práci GSA a zjistíte, jak Evropská unie využívá vesmír a jaký má satelitní navigace vliv na náš každodenní život.

Program také zahrnuje zajímavé semináře, soutěže, výstavy, animační aktivity pro rodiny s dětmi, činnosti pro školy a jiné zábavné aktivity! Přijďte nás navštívit a uvidíte model jednoho ze satelitů systému Galileo v různých konfiguracích, vyfotíte se ve vesmíru, zkusíte přistát s pomocí satelitní navigace a můžete vyhrát ceny.

Program Dnů otevřených dveří najdete zde.

Pokud chcete přijít jako školní návštěva, zaregistrujte se zde, nebo nám napište na tuto adresu: gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu

Těšíme se na vaši návštěvu.

Sledujte naše novinky týkající se Dnů otevřených dveří na Twitteru, na adrese @EU_GNSS.

Pokud chcete psát o Dnech otevřených dveří, prosíme, použijte #GSAOpendays.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpenDays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpenDays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpenDays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

On Friday, December 2nd and Saturday 3rd, the GSA Headquarters in Prague will be open to the public for the 2nd year in a row, and give an unique opportunity to get an inside look at European GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) services and the people behind them.

During our Open Days, you will travel between Space and business in the Czech Republic.

This is also a unique opportunity to listen to presentations by our Czech partners that have participated in R&D projects!  You will learn about what the European Union is doing in space, especially in satellite navigation, the work of the GSA and how satellite navigation impacts all of our daily lives.  

The programme also includes exciting seminars, competitions, exhibitions, animations for families with children, programmes for school visits and other fun activities!

Come visit us to see models of one of Galileo satellites in various configurations, take pictures in space, experiment with landing using satellite technology, and win prizes!

A draft of the full programme can be found here.

If you want to visit us as a school, please send us a message to gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Prague Headquarters.

On Twitter, follow @EU_GNSS for regular updates about the OPEN DAYS.        

Use the hashtag #GSAOpendays to tweet about the OPEN DAYS.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

V pátek 2. prosince a v sobotu 3. prosince, ústředí GSA v Praze bude otevřeno pro veřejnost už druhý rok v řadě a poskytne unikátní příležitost nahlédnout do služeb spojených s Evropskými satelitními navigačními systémy a s lidmi, kteří stojí za jejich existencí.

Během Dnů otevřených dveří budete cestovat mezi vesmírem a obchodem v České republice.

Toto je skvělá příležitost poslechnout si prezentace českých partnerů GSA, kteří se zúčastnili našich výzkumných a vývojových projektů! Dozvíte se více o práci GSA a zjistíte, jak Evropská unie využívá vesmír a jaký má satelitní navigace vliv na náš každodenní život.

Program také zahrnuje zajímavé semináře, soutěže, výstavy, animační aktivity pro rodiny s dětmi, činnosti pro školy a jiné zábavné aktivity! Přijďte nás navštívit a uvidíte model jednoho ze satelitů systému Galileo v různých konfiguracích, vyfotíte se ve vesmíru, zkusíte přistát s pomocí satelitní navigace a můžete vyhrát ceny.

Program Dnů otevřených dveří najdete zde.

Pokud chcete přijít jako školní návštěva, zaregistrujte se zde, nebo nám napište na tuto adresu: gsaopendays@gsa.europa.eu

Těšíme se na vaši návštěvu.

Sledujte naše novinky týkající se Dnů otevřených dveří na Twitteru, na adrese @EU_GNSS.

Pokud chcete psát o Dnech otevřených dveří, prosíme, použijte #GSAOpenDays.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Taking place on eve of the declaration of Galileo Initial Services, the theme of this year’s GSA Special Prize is the most innovative application idea for Galileo Initial Services. Within this scope of the 2016 European Satellite Navigation Competition, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) sought the best ideas and applications that leverage Galileo’s Initial Services to provide new and more robust benefits to end-users.

This year’s winning project, Drones2GNSS, combines two of today’s hottest topics in global navigation satellite systems (GNSS): Galileo and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The project proposes an innovative approach to addressing a timeless problem of surveying engineers: positioning accuracy in urban canyons and vegetated areas.

“Although Galileo Initial Services are expected to enhance the accuracy of existing solutions, Drones2GNSS proposes an off-the shelf application that uses European GNSS (i.e., Galileo, EGNOS) as the primary means of positioning,” says project partner Space Geomatica’s Achilles Tripolitsiotis. “As GNSS signals are degraded in obstructed environments by skyscrapers, vegetation and geomorphology, our project proposes using drones as intermediate carriers of high precision GNSS signals that can then transfer the geolocation accuracy to the ground.” 

To accomplish this, Drones2GNSS relies heavily on multi-constellation GNSS signals – which is where Galileo will make the difference. “As current constellations like GPS and GLONASS have proven inefficient in confronting the aforementioned surveying problem, the sector continues to rely on traditional surveying techniques,” says Tripolitsiotis. “However, with the launch of the Galileo era and the utilisation of the Drones2GNSS approach, we can now provide surveying engineers a cost effective, accurate and fast positioning solution.”

An idea born from experience

As engineers working for more than 15 years in various engineering, geotechnical, mining and surveying projects, the project team knew the problems of degraded positioning accuracy first-hand. “Even though the advent of GNSS positioning significantly improved the time it takes to perform classical surveying work, this is not the case when one has to work in urban canyons and/or vegetated areas,” says Tripolitsiotis. “Thus, in such obstructed environments, classic ground geodetic techniques have to be carried out to provide accurate positioning.”

It was the combination of this first-hand experience with the expertise of the project’s academic partners in UAV technology that resulted in the Drones2GNSS project. The system is comprised of a drone equipped with a highly accurate GNSS receiver, a digital camera/laser measuring system capable of retrieving the coordinates of custom made surveying poles, a prism and a target marker. The system retrieves the coordinates of a topographic pole where a known market pattern is attached via delicate GNSS and image processing.

“When applying digital target detection, real time and on-board image processing, triangulation and/or trilateration, we can guarantee the same level of accuracy down to the ground,” says Tripolitsiotis. “This will be achieved via an innovative topographic pole that, in addition to a prism and a GNSS antenna, will carry visual markers for automated detection from the UAV’s camera.”

Eyeing the market

Tripolitsiotis says he believes there’s significant market potential for Drones2GNSS, particularly with surveyors who can add the system as an add-on to their existing product line. “The current and future trend in GNSS surveying is that everyone will use UAVs as no additional capital investment is necessary, meaning there is already a market demand for systems like Drones2GNSS,” he says. “Furthermore, our project uses equipment that all surveying engineers already have and the hard/software is easily adaptable to existing solutions, meaning it can be used by a wide array of applications.”

“This GSA Special Prize means a lot to our project as it proves that when you have the passion, the vision, the knowledge and technical expertise your work will be recognised,” says Tripolitsiotis. “The prize will play a big role in helping us expand our reputation from niche markets to the wider GNSS industry and provide us the means to bring the Drones2GNSS system to market.” 

As the winner of the GSA Special Prize, the Drone2GNSS project now has the opportunity to develop their idea at an incubation centre of their choice within the EU-28 for six months, with the possibility of a further six months according to progress. Furthermore, for the first time, the project will be showcased at the official Galileo Service Declaration Ceremony in Brussels, when Initial Services are announced to the world. 

About the GSA Special Topic Prize

The GSA Special Topic Prize was awarded during last night’s (25 October 2016) annual European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC) and Copernicus Masters ceremony, Europe’s pre-eminent innovation competitions for space applications.

The 2016 edition of the ESNC again received a remarkable number of entries. Drone2GNSS’s winning idea was competing against a total of 413 entries from 40 different countries, with 150 from start-up companies and 124 entries coming from individuals. In terms of topics, the majority of entries were submitted under the Mobile Location Based Services (LBS) category, followed by Smart Moving and Safety & Security.

The annual event recognises the most outstanding applications for Copernicus and European GNSS (Galileo and EGNOS) in various categories. Since 2014, the awards ceremony has been associated with the Satellite Masters Conference, taking place this year from 25 – 27 October. The conference features plenary sessions, workshops and roundtable discussions centred on leveraging satellite-derived data and other space solutions for business and society. It is a unique marketplace for sharing ideas on space-based innovation and connecting with the world’s leading network for downstream satellite business.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Intergeo is the place to be for the geodesy, geoinformation and land management sector – and the 2016 edition, taking place in Hamburg, was no exception.

In the world of big data and smart cities, geodata, accurate positioning and location-based services (LBS) are key to enabling the development and implementation of new services to citizens. As such, the two main themes for Intergeo 2016 were digitisation and smart technologies for smart cities.

Among the 160 lecturers addressing these themes during the congress was a session on Trends in Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Positioning, where the European GNSS Agency (GSA) discussed using Galileo’s initial services. The session was chaired by Dr Jahn Cord-Hinrich of LGLN Niedersachsen and included presentations by GSA Market Development Officer Reinhard Blasi, Trimble Terrasat’s Dr Herbert Landau, Leica Geosystems’ Bernhard Richter, and Dr Gerhard Wübbena from Geo++.

Is the geodetic community ready for Galileo?

The GSA began the session by providing a status update on the Galileo programme and the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) and the future contributions expected from these two European GNSS. With Galileo initial services available by the end of the year and the first launch of four Galileo satellites by an Ariane 5 launcher set for 17 November, Reinhard says the establishment of the full constellation is well under way. He also noted the opening of the European GNSS Service Centre (GSC) – Galileo’s one-stop shop for system users –is reflective of the programme’s user-centric approach.

“The rapid deployment of the constellation signal will place Galileo in a leading position in terms of dual frequency L1/E1-L5/E5, particularly as these Galileo satellite launches are occurring in a period when GPS space vehicles are in the process of being gradually replaced,” says Blasi.

The geodetic community is very appreciative of the high accuracy brought by Galileo´s Commercial Service (CS). The CS is broadcasted from a moving GNSS constellation rather than the traditional geostationary approach (thus increasing continuity and availability, even in in harsh environments). In terms of authentication, either through CS or the Open Service, Galileo will be able to provide confirmation via what is effectively a stamp that shows a signal has not been manipulated.

Other benefits include the possibility that Galileo will play a role in reducing convergence times for precise point positioning (PPP) applications. For real-time kinematics (RTK), the addition of another GNSS constellation will make a big difference, for example in urban canyons and forests.

But is the geodetic community ready for Galileo? According to a recent GSA survey, for the majority, the answer appears to be ‘yes’. For example, 77 % of responding reference networks say they have enough information to integrate Galileo into their systems, while 41 % say they are already fully prepared to use Galileo signals. In total, 78 % of reference networks have plans in hand to upgrade to Galileo by 2017. More information on these findings can be found in the GSA’s recently published GNSS User Technology Report.

Young surveyor says Galileo is outstanding!

A regular feature of Intergeo is the Council of European Geodetic Surveyors’ (CLGE) young surveyor’s award ceremony. Now in its fifth year, the GSA again sponsored an award for student papers involving applications using Galileo, EGNOS or Copernicus signals.

This year’s winner was Cecile Deprez, a PhD student at the University of Liege in Belgium. Cecile’s idea stems from Google’s decision to give Android users access to GNSS code measurements, a move that could bring much greater precision to mass-market applications.

Furthermore, use of the Galileo E5 signal could, in theory, bring decimetre positioning precision into Android user applications. According to Cecile’s research, in general, Galileo signals are more precise than GPS alone.

You can assess the results yourself by visiting the CLGE website where Cecile’s and eight other high-quality papers from this year’s competition are freely available.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Although EGNOS was the main focus of the annual EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, the topic of Galileo and the upcoming declaration of initial services was in the air too.

The annual EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, held 27 to 28 September in Warsaw, covered an array of topics, including an EGNOS service status update and success stories from partners currently using the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) in real applications. There were also dedicated sessions on such key market segments as aviation, maritime and land applications.

One key highlight was the status of EGNOS version 3 (V3). The European GNSS Agency (GSA) said it is currently working with the European Space Agency (ESA) on the EGNOS V3 acquisition process. When operational, the multi-frequency/multi-constellation EGNOS V3 will improve the accuracy and reliability of the positioning information. Currently, the GSA is working on securing the procurement of the DFMC Aviation prototype receiver (to be used for flight test) and the GEO-3 Navigation Payload services, in addition to various standardisation tasks.

“The delivery of EGNOS services is remarkably reliable and is continuously improving,” adds GSA EGNOS Programme Manager Jean-Marc Pieplu. “Together with the growing adoption of EGNOS in Europe and beyond, the GSA is now engaging in important investments for the future of EGNOS, including the addition of a second signal and a second constellation – Galileo – that will further improve its services.”

Looking towards Galileo

Even though the workshop was focused on EGNOS, the topic of Galileo was addressed at the opening.  With Galileo Initial Services set to launch in the coming months, the session was an opportunity to reflect on the important role EGNOS played in laying the foundation for Galileo, together with looking ahead at what users can expect when both EGNOS and Galileo are operational.

As the GSA prepares to take over the Galileo service provision, it will lean heavily on its strong track record and experience from its work with EGNOS, where it has been responsible for the programme’s service provision for the past two years. “Today, on the eve of this important step for the Galileo programme, we have the unique opportunity to see where this journey began and how far we’ve come,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “Clearly, EGNOS has taught us a lot, and the many success stories presented here in Warsaw are proof of its importance.”

Over the past two years the GSA has supported the uptake of EGNOS to benefit a wide range of users. From the user perspective, EGNOS adoption continues to increase across numerous market segments. For example, today, over 200 airports have EGNOS-based approaches; EGNOS-based precision farming benefits over two-thirds of European tractors; and EGNOS is now the standard for mapping and surveying in Europe. “The future of European satellite navigation is bright,” adds des Dorides. “Five years from now, I hope the GSA will be able to present to you the similar successes for Galileo than the ones we are all currently enjoying with EGNOS.”

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The GSA’s recently released GNSS User Technology Report aims not only to foresee how location will be used in the years to come, but also how it will influence the design of positioning systems. Download your copy today!

Imagine in the not-so-distant future setting your morning alarm based on real-time traffic estimates and having your coffee brewed accordingly, ready and waiting for you as you head out the door.

Always apologising for forgetting to send Mom flowers on Mother’s Day? No worries, soon your phone will send you an automatic reminder and provide your autonomous car with directions to the nearest floral shop. No time to shop? Then just send a drone to deliver the flowers for you.

This isn’t science fiction. In the era of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data, trends in geo-positioning and information technology (IT) are simply inseparable. After all, IoT is built on the premise that it will know where the ‘things’ are. In fact, already today nearly half of all available mobile applications use location information – a significance that will likely only increase. However, according to the GNSS User Technology Report, this will only happen if the positioning systems of the future provide:

1. Ubiquitous positioning: the ability to choose the optimal combination of sensors and networks to become environment-independent.
2. Automation and ambient intelligence: sufficient reliability to enable such autonomous operations as driving, sailing, parking, landing, etc., by sensing the environment and adapting to it in real time.
3. Security: not only in the sense of a solution’s reliability and safety, but also by responding to growing concerns about privacy.

“What this report shows is that no single positioning method or technology – or magic combination thereof – can serve as ‘the answer’,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “After all, the technology that’s right for pedestrian navigation probably isn’t the best fit for use with an unmanned vehicle.” Des Dorides explains that the reason for this is that all positioning requirements exist within a given context, including the physical and radio-electrical environment, user dynamics and power, size and weight constraints. “It is this context that determines what positioning technologies are required,” he says.

Your guide to the shaping the future

With this ‘future’ and understanding of what is required to reach it in mind, the GNSS User Technology Report aims not only to foresee how location will be used in the years to come, but also how it will influence the design of positioning systems. The need for ubiquitous positioning, automation and ambient intelligence and security are impacting all aspects of receiver design – from antenna frequency range to signal processing channels. Furthermore, the implementation of disruptive techniques, such as vector and cloud processing, is making it possible to achieve greater performances in keeping battery life at acceptable levels. On top of this, other positioning technologies and signals of opportunity are being used alongside GNSS to offer enhanced experiences. For example, sensor technology is advancing in parallel with GNSS technology, making the vision of smart dust – a widely deployed network of low power and low cost microsensors – closer to becoming a reality. GNSS antenna designers are expected to complement this solution with more robust, smaller and multi-purpose antennas.

Many of these innovations are already becoming accessible, as confirmed by the leading GNSS technology providers featured in the Report.  But what all this really means – and as the Report makes abundantly clear – the GNSS user equipment landscape is a rapidly evolving one, with a market that is more diversified than ever and where new models are being introduced at an unprecedented rate. With this development being driven by the growing performance requirements of innovative applications and developments in the semiconductor industry, now is the time to take advantage of the enhanced capabilities offered by new and modernised GNSS systems and services. And the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report is your guide to doing so.

The Report is free and can be downloaded here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

What lies ahead in the GNSS chipset and receiver domain and what are the trends sure to transform the GNSS landscape of tomorrow? Download the GSA’s first GNSS User Technology Report now to find out. 

In recent years, GNSS technology has experienced a period of rapid development – both on the side of global constellations and user receivers. With this development, European systems such as EGNOS and Galileo are becoming increasingly present in GNSS receivers, providing enhanced performance to users both in Europe and worldwide. Even with the increased deployment of other positioning technologies, because it is the most widespread and cost-effective source of location information, GNSS will remain at the core of all positioning technology.

“In view of the changing user needs in terms of expected positioning experiences, the appearance of new and modernised GNSS signals, and advances in semiconductor technologies, we felt the need to take a closer look at the impact these changes will have on user technology and GNSS’ role in the positioning solutions of the future,” says GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides.

A closer look

The outcome of this closer look is the GSA’s first GNSS User Technology Report. As a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report, the GNSS User Technology Report zeros in on the state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with analysing the trends that are sure to change the entire GNSS landscape. The Report provides an in-depth analysis of GNSS user technology as it pertains to the three key macrosegments of mass market solutions; transport safety and liability-critical solutions; and high precision, timing and asset management solutions. In addition, the Report gives a general overview of the latest GNSS receiver technology, common to all application areas, along with a supplement on location technologies that looks beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape.

Written with contributions from leading GNSS receiver and chipset manufacturers, the GNSS User Technology Report is meant to serve as a valuable tool to support planning and decision-making in regards to developing, purchasing and using GNSS user technology. “GNSS user technology is, now more than ever, experiencing a rapid and exciting evolution, answering the needs of ubiquity, automation and secure positioning,” adds des Dorides. “This report explores in detail all of these new developments and how they will bring continuous location service, reliability and robustness to the main application domains.”

The Report is free and can be downloaded here.

A note on methodology

The GNSS User Technology Report uses the GSA’s internal Technology Monitoring process (TMP).

It complements the market monitoring and forecasting process, and its objective is the monitoring of trends and developments in the GNSS supply industry. It supports the GSA in the definition of the best strategy towards Galileo market adoption, provision of updated statistics on Galileo penetration in user terminals and chipsets, and analysing Galileo positioning among other GNSS and location technologies.

Part of the process is to keep up-to-date independent analysis, which assesses the capabilities of receivers, chipsets and modules currently available on the market. For the analysis, each device is weighted equally, regardless of whether it is a chipset or a receiver, and no matter what its sales volume is. The results should therefore be interpreted not as the split of constellations utilised by end users, but rather the split of constellations available in manufacturers’ offerings.

The analysis includes all major receiver manufacturers in Europe and worldwide: Avidyne, Broadcom, CSR, Esterline, Furuno, Garmin, Hemisphere GNSS, Honeywell, Infineon, Intel, Japan Radio Co., John Deere, Kongsberg, Leica Geosystems AG, Mediatek, NavCom Technology,

Nottingham Scientific Ltd, NovAtel, Omnicom, Orolia, Qualcomm, Rockwell Collins, Septentrio, SkyTraq Technology, STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments, Thales Avionics, Topcon, Trimble, U-blox, Universal Aviation.

Search and Rescue, defence and public utilities receivers, chipsets and modules are not part of the analysis.

The information contained within the Report is a compilation of in-house knowledge, desk research, scientific papers, receiver and other user technology manufacturer’s websites and, if needed, verified by consultation with experts in the relevant domain.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is seeking your input for its 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey.

The GSA, along with the European Satellite Services Provider (ESSP), is conducting the 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey. It only takes 10 minutes to complete.

The deadline to complete the survey is December 1st.

Access the survey here.

In establishing close relationships with both current and potential users of EGNOS, we are dedicated to meeting the customers’ highest requirements and expectations.

The results of the survey will allow the GSA and ESSP to better understand EGNOS’ value to users, improve the EGNOS technology and provide better customer service.

The survey covers all market segments and services, including the Open Service and Safety of Life signal. It also assesses the ESSP’s management of EGNOS User Support Services. All EGNOS users are strongly encouraged to participate, regardless of which market segment they operate in.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is seeking your input for its 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey.

The GSA, along with the European Satellite Services Provider (ESSP), is conducting the 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey. It only takes 10 minutes to complete.

The deadline to complete the survey is December 1st.

Access the survey here.

In establishing close relationships with both current and potential users of EGNOS, we are dedicated to meeting the customers’ highest requirements and expectations.

The results of the survey will allow the GSA and ESSP to better understand EGNOS’ value to users, improve the EGNOS technology and provide better customer service.

The survey covers all market segments and services, including the Open Service and Safety of Life signal. It also assesses the ESSP’s management of EGNOS User Support Services. All EGNOS users are strongly encouraged to participate, regardless of which market segment they operate in.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is seeking your input for its 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey.

The GSA, along with the European Satellite Services Provider (ESSP), is conducting the 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey. It only takes 10 minutes to complete.

The deadline to complete the survey is December 1st.

Access the survey here.

In establishing close relationships with both current and potential users of EGNOS, we are dedicated to meeting the customers’ highest requirements and expectations.

The results of the survey will allow the GSA and ESSP to better understand EGNOS’ value to users, improve the EGNOS technology and provide better customer service.

The survey covers all market segments and services, including the Open Service and Safety of Life signal. It also assesses the ESSP’s management of EGNOS User Support Services. All EGNOS users are strongly encouraged to participate, regardless of which market segment they operate in.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is seeking your input for its 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey.

The GSA, along with the European Satellite Services Provider (ESSP), is conducting the 2016 EGNOS User Satisfaction Survey. It only takes 10 minutes to complete.

The deadline to complete the survey is December 1st.

Access the survey here.

In establishing close relationships with both current and potential users of EGNOS, we are dedicated to meeting the customers’ highest requirements and expectations.

The results of the survey will allow the GSA and ESSP to better understand EGNOS’ value to users, improve the EGNOS technology and provide better customer service.

The survey covers all market segments and services, including the Open Service and Safety of Life signal. It also assesses the ESSP’s management of EGNOS User Support Services. All EGNOS users are strongly encouraged to participate, regardless of which market segment they operate in.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency, on behalf of the European Commission, has released the new EGNOS Safety-of-Life Service Definition Document (SDD), now available for EGNOS users.

Announced at the EGNOS Service provision workshop event in Warsaw, the SoL SDD issue 3.1 has been updated to reflect the changes in EGNOS system and more importantly to reflect the performance improvements of the current EGNOS release (ESR2.4.1M) in operation. A significant improvement is the extension of APV-I and LPV-200 services towards the south-west of Europe, fully covering mainland Spain and Portugal.

“Users are our priority. This EGNOS coverage extension is in line with our will to continue improving the EGNOS services” declared GSA Executive Director, Carlo des Dorides.

The EGNOS Service Definition Document (SDD) describes the characteristics and conditions of access to the corresponding EGNOS service offered to users. Each SDD also contains updated information about the EGNOS system architecture and a Signal-In-Space (SIS) characteristic, the service performance achieved, EGNOS interfaces with users and provides information on the established technical and organizational framework, at European level, for the provision of this service.

• Safety of Life Service SDD (v3.1)

The first version of each SDD was published by the European Commission when each of the EGNOS Services were declared operational (1st October 2009, 2nd March 2011 and 30th July 2012 respectively for Open Service, Safety-of-Life and EDAS). New SDD versions are periodically published to reflect the significant changes in the EGNOS service.
The current version of the other SDDs, OS and EDAS, are available here:

• OPEN Service (2.2)
• EGNOS Data Access Service (2.2)

EGNOS (the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) is the European Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) that complements the GPS system to improve the accuracy and provide integrity to the signal over most of Europe.
It is Europe's first venture into satellite navigation and a major stepping-stone towards Galileo, Europe's own global satellite navigation system for the future.
Since January 2014, EGNOS is managed by the European GNSS Agency under a delegation agreement with the European Commission. ESSP SAS is the EGNOS Service Provider, under contract with the GSA.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency, on behalf of the European Commission, has released the new EGNOS Safety-of-Life Service Definition Document (SDD), now available for EGNOS users.

Announced at the EGNOS Service provision workshop event in Warsaw, the SoL SDD issue 3.1 has been updated to reflect the changes in EGNOS system and more importantly to reflect the performance improvements of the current EGNOS release (ESR2.4.1M) in operation. A significant improvement is the extension of APV-I and LPV-200 services towards the south-west of Europe, fully covering mainland Spain and Portugal.

“Users are our priority. This EGNOS coverage extension is in line with our will to continue improving the EGNOS services” declared GSA Executive Director, Carlo des Dorides.

The EGNOS Service Definition Document (SDD) describes the characteristics and conditions of access to the corresponding EGNOS service offered to users. Each SDD also contains updated information about the EGNOS system architecture and a Signal-In-Space (SIS) characteristic, the service performance achieved, EGNOS interfaces with users and provides information on the established technical and organizational framework, at European level, for the provision of this service.

• Safety of Life Service SDD (v3.1)

The first version of each SDD was published by the European Commission when each of the EGNOS Services were declared operational (1st October 2009, 2nd March 2011 and 30th July 2012 respectively for Open Service, Safety-of-Life and EDAS). New SDD versions are periodically published to reflect the significant changes in the EGNOS service.
The current version of the other SDDs, OS and EDAS, are available here:

• OPEN Service (2.2)
• EGNOS Data Access Service (2.2)

EGNOS (the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) is the European Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) that complements the GPS system to improve the accuracy and provide integrity to the signal over most of Europe.
It is Europe's first venture into satellite navigation and a major stepping-stone towards Galileo, Europe's own global satellite navigation system for the future.
Since January 2014, EGNOS is managed by the European GNSS Agency under a delegation agreement with the European Commission. ESSP SAS is the EGNOS Service Provider, under contract with the GSA.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency, on behalf of the European Commission, has released the new EGNOS Safety-of-Life Service Definition Document (SDD), now available for EGNOS users.

Announced at the EGNOS Service provision workshop event in Warsaw, the SoL SDD issue 3.1 has been updated to reflect the changes in EGNOS system and more importantly to reflect the performance improvements of the current EGNOS release (ESR2.4.1M) in operation. A significant improvement is the extension of APV-I and LPV-200 services towards the south-west of Europe, fully covering mainland Spain and Portugal.

“Users are our priority. This EGNOS coverage extension is in line with our will to continue improving the EGNOS services” declared GSA Executive Director, Carlo des Dorides.

The EGNOS Service Definition Document (SDD) describes the characteristics and conditions of access to the corresponding EGNOS service offered to users. Each SDD also contains updated information about the EGNOS system architecture and a Signal-In-Space (SIS) characteristic, the service performance achieved, EGNOS interfaces with users and provides information on the established technical and organizational framework, at European level, for the provision of this service.

• Safety of Life Service SDD (v3.1)

The first version of each SDD was published by the European Commission when each of the EGNOS Services were declared operational (1st October 2009, 2nd March 2011 and 30th July 2012 respectively for Open Service, Safety-of-Life and EDAS). New SDD versions are periodically published to reflect the significant changes in the EGNOS service.
The current version of the other SDDs, OS and EDAS, are available here:

• OPEN Service (2.2)
• EGNOS Data Access Service (2.2)

EGNOS (the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) is the European Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) that complements the GPS system to improve the accuracy and provide integrity to the signal over most of Europe.
It is Europe's first venture into satellite navigation and a major stepping-stone towards Galileo, Europe's own global satellite navigation system for the future.
Since January 2014, EGNOS is managed by the European GNSS Agency under a delegation agreement with the European Commission. ESSP SAS is the EGNOS Service Provider, under contract with the GSA.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency, on behalf of the European Commission, has released the new EGNOS Safety-of-Life Service Definition Document (SDD), now available for EGNOS users.

Announced at the EGNOS Service provision workshop event in Warsaw, the SoL SDD issue 3.1 has been updated to reflect the changes in EGNOS system and more importantly to reflect the performance improvements of the current EGNOS release (ESR2.4.1M) in operation. A significant improvement is the extension of APV-I and LPV-200 services towards the south-west of Europe, fully covering mainland Spain and Portugal.

“Users are our priority. This EGNOS coverage extension is in line with our will to continue improving the EGNOS services” declared GSA Executive Director, Carlo des Dorides.

The EGNOS Service Definition Document (SDD) describes the characteristics and conditions of access to the corresponding EGNOS service offered to users. Each SDD also contains updated information about the EGNOS system architecture and a Signal-In-Space (SIS) characteristic, the service performance achieved, EGNOS interfaces with users and provides information on the established technical and organizational framework, at European level, for the provision of this service.

• Safety of Life Service SDD (v3.1)

The first version of each SDD was published by the European Commission when each of the EGNOS Services were declared operational (1st October 2009, 2nd March 2011 and 30th July 2012 respectively for Open Service, Safety-of-Life and EDAS). New SDD versions are periodically published to reflect the significant changes in the EGNOS service.
The current version of the other SDDs, OS and EDAS, are available here:

• OPEN Service (2.2)
• EGNOS Data Access Service (2.2)

EGNOS (the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) is the European Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) that complements the GPS system to improve the accuracy and provide integrity to the signal over most of Europe.
It is Europe's first venture into satellite navigation and a major stepping-stone towards Galileo, Europe's own global satellite navigation system for the future.
Since January 2014, EGNOS is managed by the European GNSS Agency under a delegation agreement with the European Commission. ESSP SAS is the EGNOS Service Provider, under contract with the GSA.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

European GNSS is accelerating progress towards autonomous driving and, as a result, is increasing safety, enhancing traffic flow and ensuring better public mobility.

Autonomous and connected vehicles are positioning themselves as the way of the future. For some years now Google has been testing their driverless car, and in Pittsburgh Uber recently launched its self-driving car service in collaboration with Volvo, the Swedish car maker. 

And this is only the beginning.

Speaking at a dedicated session on European GNSS and smart mobility during last spring’s European Space Solutions conference in The Hague, Florien van Der Windt of the Netherlands’ Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment noted that the self-driving car is no longer a science-fiction fantasy: “The heart of modern-day cars is IT, with vehicles now being mobile sensor hubs,” she said. “Not only will this advancement towards the autonomous vehicle increase safety, enhance traffic flow and provide better public mobility, it will also have a huge impact on the economy.”

A key challenge to the advancement of the autonomous vehicle, however, remains the availability of accurate and reliable GNSS. For example, the current level of guidance and positioning available relies on what one speaker called a “severe simplification of road descriptions” that are not valid for such next-generation uses as lane-level positioning. On this point, the launch of Galileo Initial Services later this year will be a major step towards achieving the necessary level of accuracy and reliability. Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars.

However, in order to achieve the level of positioning required for the safe operation of autonomous vehicles, a fusion of computer vision and GNSS technologies is required – a fusion that the EU-funded inLane project is currently working on. The project is developing dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The system is set to start testing in the Netherlands and Spain in the near future.

Furthermore, WEpod, a completely automated vehicle currently being tested in the Netherlands, is being viewed as a ‘last mile’ mobility solution. The vehicle has no steering wheel and utilises a combination of robust GNSS, digital maps, radars, cameras, laser scanners and ultrasonic scanners. The sub-metre localisation system uses multi-constellation GNSS with network-based real-time kinematics (RTK). Company researchers note that while in the current testing phase an on-board human ‘steward’ is required, the hope is to soon transition to using a control room for vehicle monitoring.

In Italy, the Fiat Research Centre is working on vehicle geolocation for automation. According to a company representative, although technology capable of exchanging the time-critical messages needed for driver assistance is already available in new vehicle models, it falls short of being able to provide full automation. To help fill this technology gap, two GSA-supported projects are working to achieve the required level of reliable positioning needed to enable autonomous driving. The InDrive project is developing a  close-to-market solution that relies heavily on accurate and high-integrity satellite navigation based on European GNSS, while the Escape project’s goal is to design a European GNSS integrated location system that works as an ‘engine’ for multiple safety-critical applications. This work is being done in collaboration with automaker Renault.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

European GNSS is accelerating progress towards autonomous driving and, as a result, is increasing safety, enhancing traffic flow and ensuring better public mobility.

Autonomous and connected vehicles are positioning themselves as the way of the future. For some years now Google has been testing their driverless car, and in Pittsburgh Uber recently launched its self-driving car service in collaboration with Volvo, the Swedish car maker. 

And this is only the beginning.

Speaking at a dedicated session on European GNSS and smart mobility during last spring’s European Space Solutions conference in The Hague, Florien van Der Windt of the Netherlands’ Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment noted that the self-driving car is no longer a science-fiction fantasy: “The heart of modern-day cars is IT, with vehicles now being mobile sensor hubs,” she said. “Not only will this advancement towards the autonomous vehicle increase safety, enhance traffic flow and provide better public mobility, it will also have a huge impact on the economy.”

A key challenge to the advancement of the autonomous vehicle, however, remains the availability of accurate and reliable GNSS. For example, the current level of guidance and positioning available relies on what one speaker called a “severe simplification of road descriptions” that are not valid for such next-generation uses as lane-level positioning. On this point, the launch of Galileo Initial Services later this year will be a major step towards achieving the necessary level of accuracy and reliability. Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars.

However, in order to achieve the level of positioning required for the safe operation of autonomous vehicles, a fusion of computer vision and GNSS technologies is required – a fusion that the EU-funded inLane project is currently working on. The project is developing dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The system is set to start testing in the Netherlands and Spain in the near future.

Furthermore, WEpod, a completely automated vehicle currently being tested in the Netherlands, is being viewed as a ‘last mile’ mobility solution. The vehicle has no steering wheel and utilises a combination of robust GNSS, digital maps, radars, cameras, laser scanners and ultrasonic scanners. The sub-metre localisation system uses multi-constellation GNSS with network-based real-time kinematics (RTK). Company researchers note that while in the current testing phase an on-board human ‘steward’ is required, the hope is to soon transition to using a control room for vehicle monitoring.

In Italy, the Fiat Research Centre is working on vehicle geolocation for automation. According to a company representative, although technology capable of exchanging the time-critical messages needed for driver assistance is already available in new vehicle models, it falls short of being able to provide full automation. To help fill this technology gap, two GSA-supported projects are working to achieve the required level of reliable positioning needed to enable autonomous driving. The InDrive project is developing a  close-to-market solution that relies heavily on accurate and high-integrity satellite navigation based on European GNSS, while the Escape project’s goal is to design a European GNSS integrated location system that works as an ‘engine’ for multiple safety-critical applications. This work is being done in collaboration with automaker Renault.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

European GNSS is accelerating progress towards autonomous driving and, as a result, is increasing safety, enhancing traffic flow and ensuring better public mobility.

Autonomous and connected vehicles are positioning themselves as the way of the future. For some years now Google has been testing their driverless car, and in Pittsburgh Uber recently launched its self-driving car service in collaboration with Volvo, the Swedish car maker. 

And this is only the beginning.

Speaking at a dedicated session on European GNSS and smart mobility during last spring’s European Space Solutions conference in The Hague, Florien van Der Windt of the Netherlands’ Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment noted that the self-driving car is no longer a science-fiction fantasy: “The heart of modern-day cars is IT, with vehicles now being mobile sensor hubs,” she said. “Not only will this advancement towards the autonomous vehicle increase safety, enhance traffic flow and provide better public mobility, it will also have a huge impact on the economy.”

A key challenge to the advancement of the autonomous vehicle, however, remains the availability of accurate and reliable GNSS. For example, the current level of guidance and positioning available relies on what one speaker called a “severe simplification of road descriptions” that are not valid for such next-generation uses as lane-level positioning. On this point, the launch of Galileo Initial Services later this year will be a major step towards achieving the necessary level of accuracy and reliability. Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars.

However, in order to achieve the level of positioning required for the safe operation of autonomous vehicles, a fusion of computer vision and GNSS technologies is required – a fusion that the EU-funded inLane project is currently working on. The project is developing dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The system is set to start testing in the Netherlands and Spain in the near future.

Furthermore, WEpod, a completely automated vehicle currently being tested in the Netherlands, is being viewed as a ‘last mile’ mobility solution. The vehicle has no steering wheel and utilises a combination of robust GNSS, digital maps, radars, cameras, laser scanners and ultrasonic scanners. The sub-metre localisation system uses multi-constellation GNSS with network-based real-time kinematics (RTK). Company researchers note that while in the current testing phase an on-board human ‘steward’ is required, the hope is to soon transition to using a control room for vehicle monitoring.

In Italy, the Fiat Research Centre is working on vehicle geolocation for automation. According to a company representative, although technology capable of exchanging the time-critical messages needed for driver assistance is already available in new vehicle models, it falls short of being able to provide full automation. To help fill this technology gap, two GSA-supported projects are working to achieve the required level of reliable positioning needed to enable autonomous driving. The InDrive project is developing a  close-to-market solution that relies heavily on accurate and high-integrity satellite navigation based on European GNSS, while the Escape project’s goal is to design a European GNSS integrated location system that works as an ‘engine’ for multiple safety-critical applications. This work is being done in collaboration with automaker Renault.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

European GNSS is accelerating progress towards autonomous driving and, as a result, is increasing safety, enhancing traffic flow and ensuring better public mobility.

Autonomous and connected vehicles are positioning themselves as the way of the future. For some years now Google has been testing their driverless car, and in Pittsburgh Uber recently launched its self-driving car service in collaboration with Volvo, the Swedish car maker. 

And this is only the beginning.

Speaking at a dedicated session on European GNSS and smart mobility during last spring’s European Space Solutions conference in The Hague, Florien van Der Windt of the Netherlands’ Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment noted that the self-driving car is no longer a science-fiction fantasy: “The heart of modern-day cars is IT, with vehicles now being mobile sensor hubs,” she said. “Not only will this advancement towards the autonomous vehicle increase safety, enhance traffic flow and provide better public mobility, it will also have a huge impact on the economy.”

A key challenge to the advancement of the autonomous vehicle, however, remains the availability of accurate and reliable GNSS. For example, the current level of guidance and positioning available relies on what one speaker called a “severe simplification of road descriptions” that are not valid for such next-generation uses as lane-level positioning. On this point, the launch of Galileo Initial Services later this year will be a major step towards achieving the necessary level of accuracy and reliability. Galileo will provide a stronger service that is more resistant to multipath interference in urban canyons, along with an authenticated signal capable of detecting spoofing attacks – both absolute musts for the safe operation of autonomous cars.

However, in order to achieve the level of positioning required for the safe operation of autonomous vehicles, a fusion of computer vision and GNSS technologies is required – a fusion that the EU-funded inLane project is currently working on. The project is developing dynamic maps that are updated in real time via cloud crowdsourcing techniques. The system is set to start testing in the Netherlands and Spain in the near future.

Furthermore, WEpod, a completely automated vehicle currently being tested in the Netherlands, is being viewed as a ‘last mile’ mobility solution. The vehicle has no steering wheel and utilises a combination of robust GNSS, digital maps, radars, cameras, laser scanners and ultrasonic scanners. The sub-metre localisation system uses multi-constellation GNSS with network-based real-time kinematics (RTK). Company researchers note that while in the current testing phase an on-board human ‘steward’ is required, the hope is to soon transition to using a control room for vehicle monitoring.

In Italy, the Fiat Research Centre is working on vehicle geolocation for automation. According to a company representative, although technology capable of exchanging the time-critical messages needed for driver assistance is already available in new vehicle models, it falls short of being able to provide full automation. To help fill this technology gap, two GSA-supported projects are working to achieve the required level of reliable positioning needed to enable autonomous driving. The InDrive project is developing a  close-to-market solution that relies heavily on accurate and high-integrity satellite navigation based on European GNSS, while the Escape project’s goal is to design a European GNSS integrated location system that works as an ‘engine’ for multiple safety-critical applications. This work is being done in collaboration with automaker Renault.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA), along with the e-KnoT project and in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), recently held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Over the summer, the GSA-funded e-KnoT project, in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Topics included the different forms of IPR and how to best protect each of them, along with practical insight on IPR contractual provisions in EU and GSA grants and procurements, as well as in ESA projects.

The event was offered in cooperation with BHO Legal, Cologne and Munich, and supported by the European Patent Office (EPO) in Rijswijk and Munich. 

What is IPR?

According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Intellectual Property (IP) refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. ‘By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish’, says the WIPO.

IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. A patent, perhaps the most common method for protecting IPR, is essentially a legal title granting the holder the right to prevent third parties from commercially using an invention without prior authorisation. In return for this protection, the holder is required to disclose the invention to the public. Typically patent protection is granted for a limited period of time (up to 20 years) and for a specified geographic area.

Within the world of GNSS, examples of IPR include the European Patent for the modulation signal for a satellite navigation system. It can also include technology and product design, such as a GNSS integrated antenna.

How do I protect my IPR?

On a European scale, IPR is managed by the European Patent Office. With limited exceptions, in order to receive a patent, the invention must be new, involve an inventive step and be industrially applicable. Typically, patent claims relate to a product, a process, an apparatus or a method. In order to file a patent in Europe, an inventor has three options:

1. European route: applicant files a direct European application (i.e., first filing)
2. National route: applicant files a national application first and, following that, a European application (i.e., second filing) within 12 month after filing the national application and claiming priority from said application.
3. International route: applicant files a PCT application according to the international Patent Cooperation Treaty, and, following that, the applicant enters the European/ National phase (after 30/31 months after filing).

To file, the applicant begins by preparing a description of the invention, one or more claims and, when applicable, some graphs and drawings. The application could be filed online, by fax or post. Once received, the patent office first checks the document for compliance and, if compliant, assigns it a date of filing – which protects it against any similar patent being filed at the same time (i.e., the first to file gets the patent).

In case of option one, the EPO then conducts a search and examination procedure to ensure the invention has not already been patented in Europe. Based on this search, the patent office will issue a search report and preliminary opinion on patentability. Next, applications are examined by a panel of three expert examiners who check that the scope of protection is limited to what is actually patentable.

Help! My patent has been infringed!

Even with a patent, your IPR can still be violated. A patent infringement is defined as the commission of a prohibited act with regard to a patented invention without permission from the patent holder. However, it should be noted that infringement can only occur in countries where a patent is in force; a pending patent application is not sufficient for infringement.

To determine if a patent has been infringed, a specific test is used, requiring that the infringing party’s product or method falls within one or more of the (independent) claims of the patent. If, however, it is shown that the patent holder is not practicing the patented invention, that the infringing party is not performing on any infringing act in the territory covered by the patent, that the patent has expired or has otherwise become invalid, then no infringement will be found.

IPR and European GNSS

So how does this all apply to the development of GNSS technologies? First, it must be remembered that the legal framework for the European GNSS programme is set by the the European Union. The GNSS Regulation specifies that the Union shall be the owner of all tangible and intangible assets created or developed under the Galileo and EGNOS programmes. The Commission shall ensure the optimal use of these assets and an effective IPR management, taking into account the need to protect and give value to the Union's intellectual property rights, the interests of all stakeholders, and the necessity of harmonious development of the markets and of new technologies.

In practice, IPR management is implemented on the level of contracts, with dedicated and sometimes highly complex provisions. The applicability of certain IPR rules depends on whether a project receives a grant (complementary financing, subject to annual programming) or goes through public procurement (process where public authorities purchase work, goods or services).

As a general rule, the EU becomes the owner of all tangible and intangible assets developed or created under public contracts resulting from procurements. As to grants, however, the beneficiary, with exceptions, typically maintains the rights to IP. In this context, it is important to note that although the Commission and the GSA issue both grants and procurements, the ESA only issues procurements.

Where can I learn more?

Clearly, the area of IPR in the context of GNSS is highly complex. To learn more the national and the European Patent Offices offer helpdesks. In addition, especially around the main premises of these institutions, a wide community of specialised patent attorneys is ready to support you. Often regions like Bavaria have an interest to support filing of technology-related patents, so it is a good idea to look for the local aerospace cluster in your region and contact them.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA), along with the e-KnoT project and in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), recently held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Over the summer, the GSA-funded e-KnoT project, in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Topics included the different forms of IPR and how to best protect each of them, along with practical insight on IPR contractual provisions in EU and GSA grants and procurements, as well as in ESA projects.

The event was offered in cooperation with BHO Legal, Cologne and Munich, and supported by the European Patent Office (EPO) in Rijswijk and Munich. 

What is IPR?

According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Intellectual Property (IP) refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. ‘By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish’, says the WIPO.

IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. A patent, perhaps the most common method for protecting IPR, is essentially a legal title granting the holder the right to prevent third parties from commercially using an invention without prior authorisation. In return for this protection, the holder is required to disclose the invention to the public. Typically patent protection is granted for a limited period of time (up to 20 years) and for a specified geographic area.

Within the world of GNSS, examples of IPR include the European Patent for the modulation signal for a satellite navigation system. It can also include technology and product design, such as a GNSS integrated antenna.

How do I protect my IPR?

On a European scale, IPR is managed by the European Patent Office. With limited exceptions, in order to receive a patent, the invention must be new, involve an inventive step and be industrially applicable. Typically, patent claims relate to a product, a process, an apparatus or a method. In order to file a patent in Europe, an inventor has three options:

1. European route: applicant files a direct European application (i.e., first filing)
2. National route: applicant files a national application first and, following that, a European application (i.e., second filing) within 12 month after filing the national application and claiming priority from said application.
3. International route: applicant files a PCT application according to the international Patent Cooperation Treaty, and, following that, the applicant enters the European/ National phase (after 30/31 months after filing).

To file, the applicant begins by preparing a description of the invention, one or more claims and, when applicable, some graphs and drawings. The application could be filed online, by fax or post. Once received, the patent office first checks the document for compliance and, if compliant, assigns it a date of filing – which protects it against any similar patent being filed at the same time (i.e., the first to file gets the patent).

In case of option one, the EPO then conducts a search and examination procedure to ensure the invention has not already been patented in Europe. Based on this search, the patent office will issue a search report and preliminary opinion on patentability. Next, applications are examined by a panel of three expert examiners who check that the scope of protection is limited to what is actually patentable.

Help! My patent has been infringed!

Even with a patent, your IPR can still be violated. A patent infringement is defined as the commission of a prohibited act with regard to a patented invention without permission from the patent holder. However, it should be noted that infringement can only occur in countries where a patent is in force; a pending patent application is not sufficient for infringement.

To determine if a patent has been infringed, a specific test is used, requiring that the infringing party’s product or method falls within one or more of the (independent) claims of the patent. If, however, it is shown that the patent holder is not practicing the patented invention, that the infringing party is not performing on any infringing act in the territory covered by the patent, that the patent has expired or has otherwise become invalid, then no infringement will be found.

IPR and European GNSS

So how does this all apply to the development of GNSS technologies? First, it must be remembered that the legal framework for the European GNSS programme is set by the the European Union. The GNSS Regulation specifies that the Union shall be the owner of all tangible and intangible assets created or developed under the Galileo and EGNOS programmes. The Commission shall ensure the optimal use of these assets and an effective IPR management, taking into account the need to protect and give value to the Union's intellectual property rights, the interests of all stakeholders, and the necessity of harmonious development of the markets and of new technologies.

In practice, IPR management is implemented on the level of contracts, with dedicated and sometimes highly complex provisions. The applicability of certain IPR rules depends on whether a project receives a grant (complementary financing, subject to annual programming) or goes through public procurement (process where public authorities purchase work, goods or services).

As a general rule, the EU becomes the owner of all tangible and intangible assets developed or created under public contracts resulting from procurements. As to grants, however, the beneficiary, with exceptions, typically maintains the rights to IP. In this context, it is important to note that although the Commission and the GSA issue both grants and procurements, the ESA only issues procurements.

Where can I learn more?

Clearly, the area of IPR in the context of GNSS is highly complex. To learn more the national and the European Patent Offices offer helpdesks. In addition, especially around the main premises of these institutions, a wide community of specialised patent attorneys is ready to support you. Often regions like Bavaria have an interest to support filing of technology-related patents, so it is a good idea to look for the local aerospace cluster in your region and contact them.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA), along with the e-KnoT project and in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), recently held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Over the summer, the GSA-funded e-KnoT project, in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Topics included the different forms of IPR and how to best protect each of them, along with practical insight on IPR contractual provisions in EU and GSA grants and procurements, as well as in ESA projects.

The event was offered in cooperation with BHO Legal, Cologne and Munich, and supported by the European Patent Office (EPO) in Rijswijk and Munich. 

What is IPR?

According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Intellectual Property (IP) refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. ‘By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish’, says the WIPO.

IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. A patent, perhaps the most common method for protecting IPR, is essentially a legal title granting the holder the right to prevent third parties from commercially using an invention without prior authorisation. In return for this protection, the holder is required to disclose the invention to the public. Typically patent protection is granted for a limited period of time (up to 20 years) and for a specified geographic area.

Within the world of GNSS, examples of IPR include the European Patent for the modulation signal for a satellite navigation system. It can also include technology and product design, such as a GNSS integrated antenna.

How do I protect my IPR?

On a European scale, IPR is managed by the European Patent Office. With limited exceptions, in order to receive a patent, the invention must be new, involve an inventive step and be industrially applicable. Typically, patent claims relate to a product, a process, an apparatus or a method. In order to file a patent in Europe, an inventor has three options:

1. European route: applicant files a direct European application (i.e., first filing)
2. National route: applicant files a national application first and, following that, a European application (i.e., second filing) within 12 month after filing the national application and claiming priority from said application.
3. International route: applicant files a PCT application according to the international Patent Cooperation Treaty, and, following that, the applicant enters the European/ National phase (after 30/31 months after filing).

To file, the applicant begins by preparing a description of the invention, one or more claims and, when applicable, some graphs and drawings. The application could be filed online, by fax or post. Once received, the patent office first checks the document for compliance and, if compliant, assigns it a date of filing – which protects it against any similar patent being filed at the same time (i.e., the first to file gets the patent).

In case of option one, the EPO then conducts a search and examination procedure to ensure the invention has not already been patented in Europe. Based on this search, the patent office will issue a search report and preliminary opinion on patentability. Next, applications are examined by a panel of three expert examiners who check that the scope of protection is limited to what is actually patentable.

Help! My patent has been infringed!

Even with a patent, your IPR can still be violated. A patent infringement is defined as the commission of a prohibited act with regard to a patented invention without permission from the patent holder. However, it should be noted that infringement can only occur in countries where a patent is in force; a pending patent application is not sufficient for infringement.

To determine if a patent has been infringed, a specific test is used, requiring that the infringing party’s product or method falls within one or more of the (independent) claims of the patent. If, however, it is shown that the patent holder is not practicing the patented invention, that the infringing party is not performing on any infringing act in the territory covered by the patent, that the patent has expired or has otherwise become invalid, then no infringement will be found.

IPR and European GNSS

So how does this all apply to the development of GNSS technologies? First, it must be remembered that the legal framework for the European GNSS programme is set by the the European Union. The GNSS Regulation specifies that the Union shall be the owner of all tangible and intangible assets created or developed under the Galileo and EGNOS programmes. The Commission shall ensure the optimal use of these assets and an effective IPR management, taking into account the need to protect and give value to the Union's intellectual property rights, the interests of all stakeholders, and the necessity of harmonious development of the markets and of new technologies.

In practice, IPR management is implemented on the level of contracts, with dedicated and sometimes highly complex provisions. The applicability of certain IPR rules depends on whether a project receives a grant (complementary financing, subject to annual programming) or goes through public procurement (process where public authorities purchase work, goods or services).

As a general rule, the EU becomes the owner of all tangible and intangible assets developed or created under public contracts resulting from procurements. As to grants, however, the beneficiary, with exceptions, typically maintains the rights to IP. In this context, it is important to note that although the Commission and the GSA issue both grants and procurements, the ESA only issues procurements.

Where can I learn more?

Clearly, the area of IPR in the context of GNSS is highly complex. To learn more the national and the European Patent Offices offer helpdesks. In addition, especially around the main premises of these institutions, a wide community of specialised patent attorneys is ready to support you. Often regions like Bavaria have an interest to support filing of technology-related patents, so it is a good idea to look for the local aerospace cluster in your region and contact them.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA), along with the e-KnoT project and in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), recently held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Over the summer, the GSA-funded e-KnoT project, in conjunction with project partner bavAIRia e.V. (the Bavarian Aerospace Cluster), held a two-day seminar providing engineers and scientists working in GNSS and the space sector with insights into the patent process and the scope and content of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection along the value chain.

Topics included the different forms of IPR and how to best protect each of them, along with practical insight on IPR contractual provisions in EU and GSA grants and procurements, as well as in ESA projects.

The event was offered in cooperation with BHO Legal, Cologne and Munich, and supported by the European Patent Office (EPO) in Rijswijk and Munich. 

What is IPR?

According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Intellectual Property (IP) refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. ‘By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish’, says the WIPO.

IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. A patent, perhaps the most common method for protecting IPR, is essentially a legal title granting the holder the right to prevent third parties from commercially using an invention without prior authorisation. In return for this protection, the holder is required to disclose the invention to the public. Typically patent protection is granted for a limited period of time (up to 20 years) and for a specified geographic area.

Within the world of GNSS, examples of IPR include the European Patent for the modulation signal for a satellite navigation system. It can also include technology and product design, such as a GNSS integrated antenna.

How do I protect my IPR?

On a European scale, IPR is managed by the European Patent Office. With limited exceptions, in order to receive a patent, the invention must be new, involve an inventive step and be industrially applicable. Typically, patent claims relate to a product, a process, an apparatus or a method. In order to file a patent in Europe, an inventor has three options:

1. European route: applicant files a direct European application (i.e., first filing)
2. National route: applicant files a national application first and, following that, a European application (i.e., second filing) within 12 month after filing the national application and claiming priority from said application.
3. International route: applicant files a PCT application according to the international Patent Cooperation Treaty, and, following that, the applicant enters the European/ National phase (after 30/31 months after filing).

To file, the applicant begins by preparing a description of the invention, one or more claims and, when applicable, some graphs and drawings. The application could be filed online, by fax or post. Once received, the patent office first checks the document for compliance and, if compliant, assigns it a date of filing – which protects it against any similar patent being filed at the same time (i.e., the first to file gets the patent).

In case of option one, the EPO then conducts a search and examination procedure to ensure the invention has not already been patented in Europe. Based on this search, the patent office will issue a search report and preliminary opinion on patentability. Next, applications are examined by a panel of three expert examiners who check that the scope of protection is limited to what is actually patentable.

Help! My patent has been infringed!

Even with a patent, your IPR can still be violated. A patent infringement is defined as the commission of a prohibited act with regard to a patented invention without permission from the patent holder. However, it should be noted that infringement can only occur in countries where a patent is in force; a pending patent application is not sufficient for infringement.

To determine if a patent has been infringed, a specific test is used, requiring that the infringing party’s product or method falls within one or more of the (independent) claims of the patent. If, however, it is shown that the patent holder is not practicing the patented invention, that the infringing party is not performing on any infringing act in the territory covered by the patent, that the patent has expired or has otherwise become invalid, then no infringement will be found.

IPR and European GNSS

So how does this all apply to the development of GNSS technologies? First, it must be remembered that the legal framework for the European GNSS programme is set by the the European Union. The GNSS Regulation specifies that the Union shall be the owner of all tangible and intangible assets created or developed under the Galileo and EGNOS programmes. The Commission shall ensure the optimal use of these assets and an effective IPR management, taking into account the need to protect and give value to the Union's intellectual property rights, the interests of all stakeholders, and the necessity of harmonious development of the markets and of new technologies.

In practice, IPR management is implemented on the level of contracts, with dedicated and sometimes highly complex provisions. The applicability of certain IPR rules depends on whether a project receives a grant (complementary financing, subject to annual programming) or goes through public procurement (process where public authorities purchase work, goods or services).

As a general rule, the EU becomes the owner of all tangible and intangible assets developed or created under public contracts resulting from procurements. As to grants, however, the beneficiary, with exceptions, typically maintains the rights to IP. In this context, it is important to note that although the Commission and the GSA issue both grants and procurements, the ESA only issues procurements.

Where can I learn more?

Clearly, the area of IPR in the context of GNSS is highly complex. To learn more the national and the European Patent Offices offer helpdesks. In addition, especially around the main premises of these institutions, a wide community of specialised patent attorneys is ready to support you. Often regions like Bavaria have an interest to support filing of technology-related patents, so it is a good idea to look for the local aerospace cluster in your region and contact them.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Are you a passionate coder wanting to shape the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Internet of Things)? Maybe you’re already working on an LBS-based application? Or perhaps you want to test your skills while developing a prototype?

Either way, the Galileo Hackathon is for you. 

The two-day hackathon is a unique opportunity to showcase your coding skills, connect with the GEO-IoT app development community, gain a competitive advantage for your future projects and compete for a chance to win exciting prizes. Competitors will also be amongst the very first to utilise Galileo-enabled mobile phones.

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the LBS community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch this year, the Galileo Hackathon is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on the ground floor and help shape the future of Location Based Services.

The challenge

The challenge to you is to come up with innovative applications that make full use of the Galileo’s numerous capabilities. There are no limitations on the types of applications you can submit, so be creative and show us how your application will bring an added commercial or societal value by using Galileo services.

Judges from the mobile technology and LBS industry, along with GNSS experts, will evaluate applications based on their level of innovation, benefit(s) to society, market readiness, usefulness, usability and design. Two winners will be announced, one for the most innovative Galileo app and one for the app having the most substantial societal impact, with both winners receiving a cash prize of EUR 500.00 and having their work featured on the GSA website.

The details

The Hackathon is open to any individual or team of two to four people interested in developing new applications using Galileo. The Hackathon will be held November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. All participants must register for both WhereCamp Berlin and the Galileo Hackathon and must commit to participating in both days of the event. Registration is free. Galileo-enabled mobile phones will be provided, so all you need to bring is your laptop and a good idea. On-site technical support will also be available.

More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Are you a passionate coder wanting to shape the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Internet of Things)? Maybe you’re already working on an LBS-based application? Or perhaps you want to test your skills while developing a prototype?

Either way, the Galileo Hackathon is for you. 

The two-day hackathon is a unique opportunity to showcase your coding skills, connect with the GEO-IoT app development community, gain a competitive advantage for your future projects and compete for a chance to win exciting prizes. Competitors will also be amongst the very first to utilise Galileo-enabled mobile phones.

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the LBS community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch this year, the Galileo Hackathon is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on the ground floor and help shape the future of Location Based Services.

The challenge

The challenge to you is to come up with innovative applications that make full use of the Galileo’s numerous capabilities. There are no limitations on the types of applications you can submit, so be creative and show us how your application will bring an added commercial or societal value by using Galileo services.

Judges from the mobile technology and LBS industry, along with GNSS experts, will evaluate applications based on their level of innovation, benefit(s) to society, market readiness, usefulness, usability and design. Two winners will be announced, one for the most innovative Galileo app and one for the app having the most substantial societal impact, with both winners receiving a cash prize of EUR 500.00 and having their work featured on the GSA website.

The details

The Hackathon is open to any individual or team of two to four people interested in developing new applications using Galileo. The Hackathon will be held November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. All participants must register for both WhereCamp Berlin and the Galileo Hackathon and must commit to participating in both days of the event. Registration is free. Galileo-enabled mobile phones will be provided, so all you need to bring is your laptop and a good idea. On-site technical support will also be available.

More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Are you a passionate coder wanting to shape the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Internet of Things)? Maybe you’re already working on an LBS-based application? Or perhaps you want to test your skills while developing a prototype?

Either way, the Galileo Hackathon is for you. 

The two-day hackathon is a unique opportunity to showcase your coding skills, connect with the GEO-IoT app development community, gain a competitive advantage for your future projects and compete for a chance to win exciting prizes. Competitors will also be amongst the very first to utilise Galileo-enabled mobile phones.

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the LBS community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch this year, the Galileo Hackathon is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on the ground floor and help shape the future of Location Based Services.

The challenge

The challenge to you is to come up with innovative applications that make full use of the Galileo’s numerous capabilities. There are no limitations on the types of applications you can submit, so be creative and show us how your application will bring an added commercial or societal value by using Galileo services.

Judges from the mobile technology and LBS industry, along with GNSS experts, will evaluate applications based on their level of innovation, benefit(s) to society, market readiness, usefulness, usability and design. Two winners will be announced, one for the most innovative Galileo app and one for the app having the most substantial societal impact, with both winners receiving a cash prize of EUR 500.00 and having their work featured on the GSA website.

The details

The Hackathon is open to any individual or team of two to four people interested in developing new applications using Galileo. The Hackathon will be held November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. All participants must register for both WhereCamp Berlin and the Galileo Hackathon and must commit to participating in both days of the event. Registration is free. Galileo-enabled mobile phones will be provided, so all you need to bring is your laptop and a good idea. On-site technical support will also be available.

More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Are you a passionate coder wanting to shape the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Internet of Things)? Maybe you’re already working on an LBS-based application? Or perhaps you want to test your skills while developing a prototype?

Either way, the Galileo Hackathon is for you. 

The two-day hackathon is a unique opportunity to showcase your coding skills, connect with the GEO-IoT app development community, gain a competitive advantage for your future projects and compete for a chance to win exciting prizes. Competitors will also be amongst the very first to utilise Galileo-enabled mobile phones.

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the LBS community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch this year, the Galileo Hackathon is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on the ground floor and help shape the future of Location Based Services.

The challenge

The challenge to you is to come up with innovative applications that make full use of the Galileo’s numerous capabilities. There are no limitations on the types of applications you can submit, so be creative and show us how your application will bring an added commercial or societal value by using Galileo services.

Judges from the mobile technology and LBS industry, along with GNSS experts, will evaluate applications based on their level of innovation, benefit(s) to society, market readiness, usefulness, usability and design. Two winners will be announced, one for the most innovative Galileo app and one for the app having the most substantial societal impact, with both winners receiving a cash prize of EUR 500.00 and having their work featured on the GSA website.

The details

The Hackathon is open to any individual or team of two to four people interested in developing new applications using Galileo. The Hackathon will be held November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. All participants must register for both WhereCamp Berlin and the Galileo Hackathon and must commit to participating in both days of the event. Registration is free. Galileo-enabled mobile phones will be provided, so all you need to bring is your laptop and a good idea. On-site technical support will also be available.

More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Are you a passionate coder wanting to shape the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Internet of Things)? Maybe you’re already working on an LBS-based application? Or perhaps you want to test your skills while developing a prototype?

Either way, the Galileo Hackathon is for you. 

The two-day hackathon is a unique opportunity to showcase your coding skills, connect with the GEO-IoT app development community, gain a competitive advantage for your future projects and compete for a chance to win exciting prizes. Competitors will also be amongst the very first to utilise Galileo-enabled mobile phones.

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the LBS community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch this year, the Galileo Hackathon is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on the ground floor and help shape the future of Location Based Services.

The challenge

The challenge to you is to come up with innovative applications that make full use of the Galileo’s numerous capabilities. There are no limitations on the types of applications you can submit, so be creative and show us how your application will bring an added commercial or societal value by using Galileo services.

Judges from the mobile technology and LBS industry, along with GNSS experts, will evaluate applications based on their level of innovation, benefit(s) to society, market readiness, usefulness, usability and design. Two winners will be announced, one for the most innovative Galileo app and one for the app having the most substantial societal impact, with both winners receiving a cash prize of EUR 500.00 and having their work featured on the GSA website.

The details

The Hackathon is open to any individual or team of two to four people interested in developing new applications using Galileo. The Hackathon will be held November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. All participants must register for both WhereCamp Berlin and the Galileo Hackathon and must commit to participating in both days of the event. Registration is free. Galileo-enabled mobile phones will be provided, so all you need to bring is your laptop and a good idea. On-site technical support will also be available.

More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Are you a passionate coder wanting to shape the future of Location Based Services (LBS) and Geo-IoT (Internet of Things)? Maybe you’re already working on an LBS-based application? Or perhaps you want to test your skills while developing a prototype?

Either way, the Galileo Hackathon is for you. 

The two-day hackathon is a unique opportunity to showcase your coding skills, connect with the GEO-IoT app development community, gain a competitive advantage for your future projects and compete for a chance to win exciting prizes. Competitors will also be amongst the very first to utilise Galileo-enabled mobile phones.

As Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Galileo provides improved positioning and timing information that will greatly benefit European services and users – including the LBS community. Being fully compatible with all existing and future GNSS (i.e., GPS, GLONASS, etc.), Galileo enables a seamless and accurate experience for multi-constellation users worldwide. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch this year, the Galileo Hackathon is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on the ground floor and help shape the future of Location Based Services.

The challenge

The challenge to you is to come up with innovative applications that make full use of the Galileo’s numerous capabilities. There are no limitations on the types of applications you can submit, so be creative and show us how your application will bring an added commercial or societal value by using Galileo services.

Judges from the mobile technology and LBS industry, along with GNSS experts, will evaluate applications based on their level of innovation, benefit(s) to society, market readiness, usefulness, usability and design. Two winners will be announced, one for the most innovative Galileo app and one for the app having the most substantial societal impact, with both winners receiving a cash prize of EUR 500.00 and having their work featured on the GSA website.

The details

The Hackathon is open to any individual or team of two to four people interested in developing new applications using Galileo. The Hackathon will be held November 3 – 4 during WhereCamp, the ‘unconference’ dedicated to geolocation enthusiasts and professionals, at Berlin’s Beuth University of Applied Sciences. All participants must register for both WhereCamp Berlin and the Galileo Hackathon and must commit to participating in both days of the event. Registration is free. Galileo-enabled mobile phones will be provided, so all you need to bring is your laptop and a good idea. On-site technical support will also be available.

More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies (LPWAN, Wi-Fi, UWB) and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies (LPWAN, Wi-Fi, UWB) and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry and get an inside look at the latest trends – sign up for the alert notification to be among the first to download the GSA’s GNSS User Technology Report now!

Ready to take the pulse of the GNSS user technology industry? Want to get an inside view on how the latest trends are changing the market? Then sign up today to be one of the first to download a free copy of the GSA’s inaugural GNSS User Technology Report.  

The 2016 GNSS User Technology Report is the go-to source for comprehensive knowledge and information on the dynamic, global GNSS technology industry and the latest trends. This free, downloadable publication takes an in-depth look at the latest state-of-the-art GNSS receiver technology, along with providing expert analysis on the evolutionary trends that are set to redefine the global GNSS landscape.

The report is set to be officially launched on 4 October as part of the Horizon 2020 Space Information Days in Prague. The two-day GSA-hosted event will introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals and serves as a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current Horizon 2020 funded research projects.

The report - a sister publication to the GNSS Market Report - focuses on three key macrosegments:

• mass market solutions
• transport safety and liability-critical solutions
• high precision, timing and asset management solutions

GNSS user technology – in a nutshell

The 2016 GSA GNSS User Technology Report begins with a comprehensive overview of GNSS user technology. This is followed by a focus on receiver design, innovative signal processing techniques, changes that have an impact on antennas, and GNSS vulnerabilities – and how to mitigate them.

The report then turns to a macrosegment analyses of:

• Characteristics and key performance parameters for user technology
• The industrial landscape
• Supported frequencies and constellations by GNSS receivers
• Typical state-of-the-art receiver specifications and analysis
• Future drivers and trends
• E-GNSS added value in related macrosegments

The Report’s also provides a comprehensive overview of all positioning technologies, with a specific look at what lies beyond GNSS in the positioning landscape. A closer look is taken at such augmentation systems as SBAS, PPP solutions, other radio location technologies and non-radio positioning techniques like vision aided navigation.

Sign up today!

To be one of the first to download a free copy of the 2016 GNSS User Technology Report, sign up here.

Join the European GNSS Agency at ION GNSS+ – the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services – to discover what’s next in smartphone innovation and mass market GNSS chipsets and the contribution of Galileo.  

Once thought to be only applicable to professional GNSS applications, soon Galileo and GPS will bring E5/L5 capacity that, used in combination with E1/L1, may become the next opportunity for innovative mass market applications. Thanks to research into the potential applicability to mass market chipsets conducted by the GSA, along with testing carried out by Broadcom, E5/L5 capability has the potential to become the second frequency for mass market use.

However, this development also raises a number of questions:

• What are the advantages of using a second frequency?
• Is E5/L5 the ideal second frequency for mass market use?
• What barriers remain to bringing this innovation to consumers?

During a special session on Galileo and LBS, held in conjunction with ION GNSS+, experts from the GSA and Broadcom will provide insight into these questions and more. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch in the coming months, speakers will provide a general overview of the programme and the role it will play in Location Based Services (LBS), along with specifically addressing the advantages that E5/L5 capability offers chipsets and receivers. Experts will also explore what further actions are needed to ensure an effective implantation into the mass market.

‘With E5/L5 capability added to the E1/L1, chipsets and receivers will benefit from better accuracy, ionosphere error cancellation, improved code tracking pseudorange estimate and faster transition from code tracking to phase tracking, among others’, says GSA Market Development Officer, Reinhard Blasi, who will be speaking at the session.

‘The strength of the Galileo signal, together with an advanced code modulations, makes Galileo better at mitigating multipath effects – especially in E5. The combination of the two frequencies E1/L1 and E5/L5 significantly contributes to reducing errors in urban environments. This feature has already attracted the attention of the automotive sector and is now beginning to interest makers of consumer devices, such as the smartphones’, adds GSA Deputy Head of Market Development, Fiammetta Diani.

The session is scheduled for Thursday, 15 September from 16:00 – 16:45 in Room C124 of the Portland Convention Center. ION GNSS+, the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services, runs from 12 – 16 September in Portland, Oregon (USA). More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Join the European GNSS Agency at ION GNSS+ – the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services – to discover what’s next in smartphone innovation and mass market GNSS chipsets and the contribution of Galileo.  

Once thought to be only applicable to professional GNSS applications, soon Galileo and GPS will bring E5/L5 capacity that, used in combination with E1/L1, may become the next opportunity for innovative mass market applications. Thanks to research into the potential applicability to mass market chipsets conducted by the GSA, along with testing carried out by Broadcom, E5/L5 capability has the potential to become the second frequency for mass market use.

However, this development also raises a number of questions:

• What are the advantages of using a second frequency?
• Is E5/L5 the ideal second frequency for mass market use?
• What barriers remain to bringing this innovation to consumers?

During a special session on Galileo and LBS, held in conjunction with ION GNSS+, experts from the GSA and Broadcom will provide insight into these questions and more. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch in the coming months, speakers will provide a general overview of the programme and the role it will play in Location Based Services (LBS), along with specifically addressing the advantages that E5/L5 capability offers chipsets and receivers. Experts will also explore what further actions are needed to ensure an effective implantation into the mass market.

‘With E5/L5 capability added to the E1/L1, chipsets and receivers will benefit from better accuracy, ionosphere error cancellation, improved code tracking pseudorange estimate and faster transition from code tracking to phase tracking, among others’, says GSA Market Development Officer, Reinhard Blasi, who will be speaking at the session.

‘The strength of the Galileo signal, together with an advanced code modulations, makes Galileo better at mitigating multipath effects – especially in E5. The combination of the two frequencies E1/L1 and E5/L5 significantly contributes to reducing errors in urban environments. This feature has already attracted the attention of the automotive sector and is now beginning to interest makers of consumer devices, such as the smartphones’, adds GSA Deputy Head of Market Development, Fiammetta Diani.

The session is scheduled for Thursday, 15 September from 16:00 – 16:45 in Room C124 of the Portland Convention Center. ION GNSS+, the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services, runs from 12 – 16 September in Portland, Oregon (USA). More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Join the European GNSS Agency at ION GNSS+ – the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services – to discover what’s next in smartphone innovation and mass market GNSS chipsets and the contribution of Galileo.  

Once thought to be only applicable to professional GNSS applications, soon Galileo and GPS will bring E5/L5 capacity that, used in combination with E1/L1, may become the next opportunity for innovative mass market applications. Thanks to research into the potential applicability to mass market chipsets conducted by the GSA, along with testing carried out by Broadcom, E5/L5 capability has the potential to become the second frequency for mass market use.

However, this development also raises a number of questions:

• What are the advantages of using a second frequency?
• Is E5/L5 the ideal second frequency for mass market use?
• What barriers remain to bringing this innovation to consumers?

During a special session on Galileo and LBS, held in conjunction with ION GNSS+, experts from the GSA and Broadcom will provide insight into these questions and more. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch in the coming months, speakers will provide a general overview of the programme and the role it will play in Location Based Services (LBS), along with specifically addressing the advantages that E5/L5 capability offers chipsets and receivers. Experts will also explore what further actions are needed to ensure an effective implantation into the mass market.

‘With E5/L5 capability added to the E1/L1, chipsets and receivers will benefit from better accuracy, ionosphere error cancellation, improved code tracking pseudorange estimate and faster transition from code tracking to phase tracking, among others’, says GSA Market Development Officer, Reinhard Blasi, who will be speaking at the session.

‘The strength of the Galileo signal, together with an advanced code modulations, makes Galileo better at mitigating multipath effects – especially in E5. The combination of the two frequencies E1/L1 and E5/L5 significantly contributes to reducing errors in urban environments. This feature has already attracted the attention of the automotive sector and is now beginning to interest makers of consumer devices, such as the smartphones’, adds GSA Deputy Head of Market Development, Fiammetta Diani.

The session is scheduled for Thursday, 15 September from 16:00 – 16:45 in Room C124 of the Portland Convention Center. ION GNSS+, the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services, runs from 12 – 16 September in Portland, Oregon (USA). More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

Join the European GNSS Agency at ION GNSS+ – the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services – to discover what’s next in smartphone innovation and mass market GNSS chipsets and the contribution of Galileo.  

Once thought to be only applicable to professional GNSS applications, soon Galileo and GPS will bring E5/L5 capacity that, used in combination with E1/L1, may become the next opportunity for innovative mass market applications. Thanks to research into the potential applicability to mass market chipsets conducted by the GSA, along with testing carried out by Broadcom, E5/L5 capability has the potential to become the second frequency for mass market use.

However, this development also raises a number of questions:

• What are the advantages of using a second frequency?
• Is E5/L5 the ideal second frequency for mass market use?
• What barriers remain to bringing this innovation to consumers?

During a special session on Galileo and LBS, held in conjunction with ION GNSS+, experts from the GSA and Broadcom will provide insight into these questions and more. With Galileo Initial Services set to launch in the coming months, speakers will provide a general overview of the programme and the role it will play in Location Based Services (LBS), along with specifically addressing the advantages that E5/L5 capability offers chipsets and receivers. Experts will also explore what further actions are needed to ensure an effective implantation into the mass market.

‘With E5/L5 capability added to the E1/L1, chipsets and receivers will benefit from better accuracy, ionosphere error cancellation, improved code tracking pseudorange estimate and faster transition from code tracking to phase tracking, among others’, says GSA Market Development Officer, Reinhard Blasi, who will be speaking at the session.

‘The strength of the Galileo signal, together with an advanced code modulations, makes Galileo better at mitigating multipath effects – especially in E5. The combination of the two frequencies E1/L1 and E5/L5 significantly contributes to reducing errors in urban environments. This feature has already attracted the attention of the automotive sector and is now beginning to interest makers of consumer devices, such as the smartphones’, adds GSA Deputy Head of Market Development, Fiammetta Diani.

The session is scheduled for Thursday, 15 September from 16:00 – 16:45 in Room C124 of the Portland Convention Center. ION GNSS+, the world’s largest technical meeting and showcase of GNSS technology, products and services, runs from 12 – 16 September in Portland, Oregon (USA). More information and registration can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In the frame of Horizon 2020 Space Work Programme 2018-2020 definition, a  stakeholder consultation - session 5:  EGNSS – focus on applications and market uptake, which will take place on 28 September 2016 in Brussels, Belgium (click here for the event programme).
 
The objective of this consultation is to exchange ideas and collect feedback on emerging Research & Development needs and priorities for EGNSS in the following main areas*:

• Transport
• Location-Based Services (LBS)
• Professional Markets and other applications

The session is designed for participants to share ideas, so stakeholder contribution is welcome and expected.
In preparation for this consultation  focusing on the three main areas mentioned above, presentation should answer to the following questions:

• What emerging applications in your area need to be addressed in the next Work Programme?
• What technology innovation or other factor (e.g. market trends, regulations, standards. etc.) will influence your area in coming years?
• How can the next Work Programme contribute to your business competitiveness in Europe and worldwide?

Deadline to send your contribution is 16 September.
For more information, please contact market@gsa.europa.eu

*PRS (Public Regulated Service) related applications are not in the scope of these consultations.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In the frame of Horizon 2020 Space Work Programme 2018-2020 definition, a  stakeholder consultation - session 5:  EGNSS – focus on applications and market uptake, which will take place on 28 September 2016 in Brussels, Belgium (click here for the event programme).
 
The objective of this consultation is to exchange ideas and collect feedback on emerging Research & Development needs and priorities for EGNSS in the following main areas*:

• Transport
• Location-Based Services (LBS)
• Professional Markets and other applications

The session is designed for participants to share ideas, so stakeholder contribution is welcome and expected.
In preparation for this consultation  focusing on the three main areas mentioned above, presentation should answer to the following questions:

• What emerging applications in your area need to be addressed in the next Work Programme?
• What technology innovation or other factor (e.g. market trends, regulations, standards. etc.) will influence your area in coming years?
• How can the next Work Programme contribute to your business competitiveness in Europe and worldwide?

Deadline to send your contribution is 16 September.
For more information, please contact market@gsa.europa.eu

*PRS (Public Regulated Service) related applications are not in the scope of these consultations.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In the frame of Horizon 2020 Space Work Programme 2018-2020 definition, a  stakeholder consultation - session 5:  EGNSS – focus on applications and market uptake, which will take place on 28 September 2016 in Brussels, Belgium (click here for the event programme).
 
The objective of this consultation is to exchange ideas and collect feedback on emerging Research & Development needs and priorities for EGNSS in the following main areas*:

• Transport
• Location-Based Services (LBS)
• Professional Markets and other applications

The session is designed for participants to share ideas, so stakeholder contribution is welcome and expected.
In preparation for this consultation  focusing on the three main areas mentioned above, presentation should answer to the following questions:

• What emerging applications in your area need to be addressed in the next Work Programme?
• What technology innovation or other factor (e.g. market trends, regulations, standards. etc.) will influence your area in coming years?
• How can the next Work Programme contribute to your business competitiveness in Europe and worldwide?

Deadline to send your contribution is 16 September.
For more information, please contact market@gsa.europa.eu

*PRS (Public Regulated Service) related applications are not in the scope of these consultations.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In the frame of Horizon 2020 Space Work Programme 2018-2020 definition, a  stakeholder consultation - session 5:  EGNSS – focus on applications and market uptake, which will take place on 28 September 2016 in Brussels, Belgium (click here for the event programme).
 
The objective of this consultation is to exchange ideas and collect feedback on emerging Research & Development needs and priorities for EGNSS in the following main areas*:

• Transport
• Location-Based Services (LBS)
• Professional Markets and other applications

The session is designed for participants to share ideas, so stakeholder contribution is welcome and expected.
In preparation for this consultation  focusing on the three main areas mentioned above, presentation should answer to the following questions:

• What emerging applications in your area need to be addressed in the next Work Programme?
• What technology innovation or other factor (e.g. market trends, regulations, standards. etc.) will influence your area in coming years?
• How can the next Work Programme contribute to your business competitiveness in Europe and worldwide?

Deadline to send your contribution is 16 September.
For more information, please contact market@gsa.europa.eu

*PRS (Public Regulated Service) related applications are not in the scope of these consultations.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

In the frame of Horizon 2020 Space Work Programme 2018-2020 definition, a  stakeholder consultation - session 5:  EGNSS – focus on applications and market uptake, which will take place on 28 September 2016 in Brussels, Belgium (click here for the event programme).
 
The objective of this consultation is to exchange ideas and collect feedback on emerging Research & Development needs and priorities for EGNSS in the following main areas*:

• Transport
• Location-Based Services (LBS)
• Professional Markets and other applications

The session is designed for participants to share ideas, so stakeholder contribution is welcome and expected.
In preparation for this consultation  focusing on the three main areas mentioned above, presentation should answer to the following questions:

• What emerging applications in your area need to be addressed in the next Work Programme?
• What technology innovation or other factor (e.g. market trends, regulations, standards. etc.) will influence your area in coming years?
• How can the next Work Programme contribute to your business competitiveness in Europe and worldwide?

Deadline to send your contribution is 16 September.
For more information, please contact market@gsa.europa.eu

*PRS (Public Regulated Service) related applications are not in the scope of these consultations.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) set to launch the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals with a dedicated information day in Prague together with the European Commission and COSMOS2020.

To introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals, on October 4 – 5, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is hosting a special H2020 Information Day in Prague. The event, which will be held in the City Hall of Prague, is a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current H2020 Research projects.  

With a budget of nearly EUR 80 billion, Horizon 2020 is the EU’s most ambitious research and innovation programme ever. As a result of this investment, it promises more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by helping usher great ideas into the lab and onto the market. This third call for proposals encourages the latest wave of entrepreneurs to step forward and learn more about how to turn their GNSS-related business ideas into reality.

The first day of the event will focus on the Horizon 2020 programme in general, including rules of participation and lessons learned. In addition, representatives of the GSA will join other EU officials to provide updates on the Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus programmes. On the second day, the focus will shift towards the benefits of participating in Horizon 2020, as told by currently funded projects.

In a session entitled The Added Value of Galileo and GNSS Funding Opportunities, participants will learn more about the Galileo Initial Services, its synergies with Copernicus, and how it will benefit such mass market applications as Smart Cities and Social LBS. During the Fostering Entrepreneurship in Space and its Applications session, the focus will be on European Business Incubation Centres, Horizon 2020 financial instruments, SME instruments and the European Trade Association for Business Angels.

The event will also include a unique brokerage session where participants can meet one-on-one with session speakers.

More information on the event, including a full agenda and details on registration, can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) set to launch the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals with a dedicated information day in Prague together with the European Commission and COSMOS2020.

To introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals, on October 4 – 5, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is hosting a special H2020 Information Day in Prague. The event, which will be held in the City Hall of Prague, is a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current H2020 Research projects.  

With a budget of nearly EUR 80 billion, Horizon 2020 is the EU’s most ambitious research and innovation programme ever. As a result of this investment, it promises more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by helping usher great ideas into the lab and onto the market. This third call for proposals encourages the latest wave of entrepreneurs to step forward and learn more about how to turn their GNSS-related business ideas into reality.

The first day of the event will focus on the Horizon 2020 programme in general, including rules of participation and lessons learned. In addition, representatives of the GSA will join other EU officials to provide updates on the Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus programmes. On the second day, the focus will shift towards the benefits of participating in Horizon 2020, as told by currently funded projects.

In a session entitled The Added Value of Galileo and GNSS Funding Opportunities, participants will learn more about the Galileo Initial Services, its synergies with Copernicus, and how it will benefit such mass market applications as Smart Cities and Social LBS. During the Fostering Entrepreneurship in Space and its Applications session, the focus will be on European Business Incubation Centres, Horizon 2020 financial instruments, SME instruments and the European Trade Association for Business Angels.

The event will also include a unique brokerage session where participants can meet one-on-one with session speakers.

More information on the event, including a full agenda and details on registration, can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) set to launch the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals with a dedicated information day in Prague together with the European Commission and COSMOS2020.

To introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals, on October 4 – 5, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is hosting a special H2020 Information Day in Prague. The event, which will be held in the City Hall of Prague, is a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current H2020 Research projects.  

With a budget of nearly EUR 80 billion, Horizon 2020 is the EU’s most ambitious research and innovation programme ever. As a result of this investment, it promises more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by helping usher great ideas into the lab and onto the market. This third call for proposals encourages the latest wave of entrepreneurs to step forward and learn more about how to turn their GNSS-related business ideas into reality.

The first day of the event will focus on the Horizon 2020 programme in general, including rules of participation and lessons learned. In addition, representatives of the GSA will join other EU officials to provide updates on the Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus programmes. On the second day, the focus will shift towards the benefits of participating in Horizon 2020, as told by currently funded projects.

In a session entitled The Added Value of Galileo and GNSS Funding Opportunities, participants will learn more about the Galileo Initial Services, its synergies with Copernicus, and how it will benefit such mass market applications as Smart Cities and Social LBS. During the Fostering Entrepreneurship in Space and its Applications session, the focus will be on European Business Incubation Centres, Horizon 2020 financial instruments, SME instruments and the European Trade Association for Business Angels.

The event will also include a unique brokerage session where participants can meet one-on-one with session speakers.

More information on the event, including a full agenda and details on registration, can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) set to launch the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals with a dedicated information day in Prague together with the European Commission and COSMOS2020.

To introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals, on October 4 – 5, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is hosting a special H2020 Information Day in Prague. The event, which will be held in the City Hall of Prague, is a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current H2020 Research projects.  

With a budget of nearly EUR 80 billion, Horizon 2020 is the EU’s most ambitious research and innovation programme ever. As a result of this investment, it promises more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by helping usher great ideas into the lab and onto the market. This third call for proposals encourages the latest wave of entrepreneurs to step forward and learn more about how to turn their GNSS-related business ideas into reality.

The first day of the event will focus on the Horizon 2020 programme in general, including rules of participation and lessons learned. In addition, representatives of the GSA will join other EU officials to provide updates on the Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus programmes. On the second day, the focus will shift towards the benefits of participating in Horizon 2020, as told by currently funded projects.

In a session entitled The Added Value of Galileo and GNSS Funding Opportunities, participants will learn more about the Galileo Initial Services, its synergies with Copernicus, and how it will benefit such mass market applications as Smart Cities and Social LBS. During the Fostering Entrepreneurship in Space and its Applications session, the focus will be on European Business Incubation Centres, Horizon 2020 financial instruments, SME instruments and the European Trade Association for Business Angels.

The event will also include a unique brokerage session where participants can meet one-on-one with session speakers.

More information on the event, including a full agenda and details on registration, can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) set to launch the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals with a dedicated information day in Prague together with the European Commission and COSMOS2020.

To introduce the third call for Horizon 2020 proposals, on October 4 – 5, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is hosting a special H2020 Information Day in Prague. The event, which will be held in the City Hall of Prague, is a unique opportunity to learn more about the proposal and selection process, along with hearing first-hand success stories from current H2020 Research projects.  

With a budget of nearly EUR 80 billion, Horizon 2020 is the EU’s most ambitious research and innovation programme ever. As a result of this investment, it promises more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by helping usher great ideas into the lab and onto the market. This third call for proposals encourages the latest wave of entrepreneurs to step forward and learn more about how to turn their GNSS-related business ideas into reality.

The first day of the event will focus on the Horizon 2020 programme in general, including rules of participation and lessons learned. In addition, representatives of the GSA will join other EU officials to provide updates on the Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus programmes. On the second day, the focus will shift towards the benefits of participating in Horizon 2020, as told by currently funded projects.

In a session entitled The Added Value of Galileo and GNSS Funding Opportunities, participants will learn more about the Galileo Initial Services, its synergies with Copernicus, and how it will benefit such mass market applications as Smart Cities and Social LBS. During the Fostering Entrepreneurship in Space and its Applications session, the focus will be on European Business Incubation Centres, Horizon 2020 financial instruments, SME instruments and the European Trade Association for Business Angels.

The event will also include a unique brokerage session where participants can meet one-on-one with session speakers.

More information on the event, including a full agenda and details on registration, can be found here.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, which serves as the annual meeting for EGNOS stakeholders, users and application developers, is scheduled for 27-28 September in Warsaw, Poland.

Organised by the ESSP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA), the event will include EGNOS service status, debates, showcases and success stories from partners currently using EGNOS in real applications. The 2016 workshop will include a dedicated sessions on aviation, maritime and land market segments. 

This will be the opportunity to a state of play after the publication of the LPV 200 service last year, the first approach procedures published and actually flown, as well as a view on what is coming next.

A draft agenda is available here.
More information and early registration are available at egnos-workshop@essp-sas.eu.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, which serves as the annual meeting for EGNOS stakeholders, users and application developers, is scheduled for 27-28 September in Warsaw, Poland.

Organised by the ESSP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA), the event will include EGNOS service status, debates, showcases and success stories from partners currently using EGNOS in real applications. The 2016 workshop will include a dedicated sessions on aviation, maritime and land market segments. 

This will be the opportunity to a state of play after the publication of the LPV 200 service last year, the first approach procedures published and actually flown, as well as a view on what is coming next.

A draft agenda is available here.
More information and early registration are available at egnos-workshop@essp-sas.eu.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, which serves as the annual meeting for EGNOS stakeholders, users and application developers, is scheduled for 27-28 September in Warsaw, Poland.

Organised by the ESSP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA), the event will include EGNOS service status, debates, showcases and success stories from partners currently using EGNOS in real applications. The 2016 workshop will include a dedicated sessions on aviation, maritime and land market segments. 

This will be the opportunity to a state of play after the publication of the LPV 200 service last year, the first approach procedures published and actually flown, as well as a view on what is coming next.

A draft agenda is available here.
More information and early registration are available at egnos-workshop@essp-sas.eu.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, which serves as the annual meeting for EGNOS stakeholders, users and application developers, is scheduled for 27-28 September in Warsaw, Poland.

Organised by the ESSP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA), the event will include EGNOS service status, debates, showcases and success stories from partners currently using EGNOS in real applications. The 2016 workshop will include a dedicated sessions on aviation, maritime and land market segments. 

This will be the opportunity to a state of play after the publication of the LPV 200 service last year, the first approach procedures published and actually flown, as well as a view on what is coming next.

A draft agenda is available here.
More information and early registration are available at egnos-workshop@essp-sas.eu.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

The EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, which serves as the annual meeting for EGNOS stakeholders, users and application developers, is scheduled for 27-28 September in Warsaw, Poland.

Organised by the ESSP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA), the event will include EGNOS service status, debates, showcases and success stories from partners currently using EGNOS in real applications. The 2016 workshop will include a dedicated sessions on aviation, maritime and land market segments. 

This will be the opportunity to a state of play after the publication of the LPV 200 service last year, the first approach procedures published and actually flown, as well as a view on what is coming next.

A draft agenda is available here.
More information and early registration are available at egnos-workshop@essp-sas.eu.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).

From emergency caller localisation to monitoring senior citizens, according to the European GNSS Agency (GSA), space-based technologies are already improving our health and safety and are set to see increasing use in the near future.

Space solutions can play a significant role in addressing a number of key health and safety-related challenges currently facing society. From emergency caller location to the monitoring of elderly patients, Europe’s global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and Earth observation programmes – including Galileo, the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) and Copernicus – are already having a substantial impact on our health and safety. Furthermore, according to the European GNSS Agency (GSA), their role will only increase in the near future.

For instance, one area where GNSS and medical technology are increasingly working together is in the Internet of Things (IoT) or, in this case, the ‘Internet of Medical Things’. According to semiconductor manufacturer ARM Director of Healthcare and Emerging Technologies Karthik Ranjan, accurate positioning data can enable better management of resources while also reducing costs.

Ranjan predicts that by 2020 we will see a “tsunami of healthcare devices” come to market, with around 1.5 billion personal sensors being used to monitor the continuum of health – including blood, sweat and urine analysis. “The combination of remote sensing and smartphone communication could help change behaviour and enable people to make better lifestyle choices,” he says.

He also predicts that such systems will reduce the need to visit a doctor or hospital for a vast majority of medical cases. “Sharing such health data as your glucose status for a diabetic with your trusted social networks can reduce costs and improve prevention of diabetic episodes,” he adds.

The silver lining

As Europe’s population continues to age, the so-called ‘Silver Economy’ will also be an impetus for the development of GNSS-enhanced medical and healthcare related devices and services. “Although we are living longer than ever before, we haven’t yet taken the necessary steps to ensure that these added years are healthy years,” says STMicroelectronics’ Mustapha Bouraoui. “What we need are solutions that promote autonomy, regular activity and general health for our senior citizens.”

Bouraoui believes that IoT will have a major impact here. For example, his company is currently involved with the Alliance for Internet of Things Innovation (AIOTI), an EU initiative aimed at building the European IoT ecosystem and one that the GSA is actively involved with. The AIOTI is already supporting some large-scale demonstrations, including five pilot projects on smart living environments for an ageing population and wearable devices for smart ecosystems.

Tracking for safety

Another area where GNSS can play an important role in the healthcare arena is with applications for tracking vulnerable people – such as those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. “Within the health and social care sectors, there is a need for the technology to be ‘invisible’, easy to use and cheap in order to enable universal safety and security for citizens,” says Satsafe Limited’s Stuart Millward. “Location-aware, multi-sensing devices could, for example, provide a radically lower cost monitoring solution for senior citizens and other vulnerable groups and has the potential to significantly reduce avoidable hospital admissions.”

An example of what these tracking devices could look like can be seen in what’s happening at Weenect. The company produces small devices that come with a smartphone app that allows for simultaneous tracking of up to four trackers. The service also establishes geo-fencing areas and alerts users if the tracked subject leaves the defined area. Some devices also include an ‘SOS’ button and voice call – a useful addition for senior citizens.

Mitigating natural disasters

In addition to their role in medical care and healthy living, GNSS and Earth observation are also having an impact on emergency response. This is particularly true when it comes to both mitigating against and responding to natural disasters. For example, the FP7 FLOODIS project has developed a cloud and mobile based flood information and management system. The project makes use of both Earth observation and EGNOS to provide an accurate disaster alert and information service, in particular for short-term flood forecasting. With the addition of Galileo in the near future, project coordinators look to add more fully integrated social media information in order to improve the system’s flood prediction models.

The FLOODIS approach is also being extended to other emergency scenarios via the Horizon 2020 I-REACT project.

Another example of the important role that European GNSS plays in emergency response can be found in the aviation sector. Here, EGNOS is helping emergency response helicopters fly into difficult conditions – thus saving more lives. The Pildo Labs’ 5 LIVES project is currently demonstrating Point in Space (PinS) procedures for helicopters using EGNOS’ robust positioning data in order to enable flight in almost all visibility conditions. The project intends to demonstrate the procedures in five specific scenarios: hospital emergency services, landing approaches in challenging (mountainous) environments, firefighting helicopters, maritime search and rescue, and emergency teams monitoring and helicopter EVAC.

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