Author: GPS World Staff

Spirent Launches Advanced Simulator for Multi-GNSS Testing

Spirent’s GSS9000 constellation simulator.

Spirent Communications, provider of testing solutions for positioning and navigations systems, has introduced the Spirent GSS9000 Multi-Frequency, Multi-GNSS RF Constellation Simulator. The GSS9000 offers a new benchmark in performance, capability and flexibility that includes the ability to simulate signals from all GNSS and regional navigation systems.

The GSS9000 offers new levels of performance, enabled by a four-fold increase in RF signal iteration rate (SIR) over Spirent’s current GSS8000 product. The GSS9000 SIR is 1000Hz (1ms), enabling higher dynamic simulations with even more accuracy and fidelity, Spirent said. It also includes support for restricted and classified signals from the GPS and Galileo systems as well as advanced capabilities for ultra-high dynamics. The GSS9000 can evaluate resilience of navigation systems to interference and spoofing attacks.

GSS9000 has the flexibility to reconfigure constellations, channels and frequencies, between test runs or test cases. In addition, the GSS9000 has been designed to be backward compatible, enabling the use of existing test cases and remote control/motion from existing Spirent simulators. Hardware changes can now be done in the field, supported by the new on-board calibrator module.

“The GSS9000 raises the performance bar and addresses the future challenges of improving accuracy and resilience for end users of GNSS technology,” said Martin Foulger, managing director of Spirent’s Positioning division. “The GSS9000 solution is a result of almost thirty years of unrivalled expertise, innovation and leadership.”

The GSS9000 is extensible and can support the widest range of carriers, ranging codes and data streams for the GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou GNSS systems as well as regional/augmentation systems. Multi-antenna/multi-vehicle simulation, for differential-GNSS and attitude determination, and interference/jamming and spoofing testing are also supported.

March 31, 2014
Synergies between Europe’s Rail and SatNav Programs Can Make Rail Travel Affordable

Cost-effective synergies between the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) and satellite technologies such as Galileo can make rail transport more efficient and reliable, agreed European authorities in February at a Rail Forum Europe dinner in Brussels. But while the technology is now available, its implementation pace is still too slow due to the long term return on investment.

Francesco Rispoli, manager of satellite technologies at Ansaldo STS, an Italian provider of rail-traffic management, planning, train control and signalling systems, stressed that satellite technology can improve the penetration of ERTMS in the worldwide market as well as on European local and low-traffic lines. He predicted that further synergies will be developed on the SHIFT²RAIL initiative: “EGNOS and Galileo are key enabling technologies for a market-driven step change in the rail sector” he concluded. In that light, Ansaldo STS is developing an open platform to allow the ERTMS to fully exploit EGNOS and Galileo.

Olivier Onidi, director for Innovative and Sustainable Mobility at the EC’s Directorate General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE), highlighted the role of ERTMS in achieving an interoperable Single European Railway Area. “2014 is a key year in terms of innovation for the rail sector. Major progress is expected on ERTMS, Galileo, and SHIFT2RAIL”.

SHIFT²RAIL is a European technology initiative seeking to double the capacity of the European rail system, increase its reliability and service quality by 50 percent ,and cut lifecycle costs in half.

Carlo des Dorides, executive director of the European GNSS Agency, applauded the ERTMS Memorandum of Understanding envisaging the future use of EGNOS and Galileo to improve the competitiveness of train control systems. “There are signs that GNSS will be adopted globally as in the aviation sector. In this scenario, Europe now has the opportunity to exploit the synergy between ERTMS and GNSS.”

March 28, 2014
Galileo Countdown to 10 by Year’s End

Europe’s Galileo satnav system.

Signs Point Toward Early Services in December, If ESA Delivers

A February conference on the European Union’s space policy in Brussels sought to set a course for 2020 and close official ranks behind the prospect of early Galileo services at the end of this year. Much in the business community’s perception of the new system — critical for device availability and mass- and professional-market adoption of Galileo — will depend on meeting the projected unveiling of early services in December. This is turn depends on an operational 10-satellite constellation; the fleet now stands at four.

Among trends noted at the meeting: the growing importance of the European GNSS Agency (GSA) as Galileo service provider, with perhaps more authority — and budget — than it has had in the past to get the job done. “The GSA will gradually assume responsibility for the operational management of the programmes while ESA will remain responsible for the deployment of Galileo, and the design and development of new generation of systems,” announced the European Commision (EC).

EC Vice President Antonio Tajani reiterated there will be three Galileo launches in 2014 to reach the requisite year-end total. “The first will come in June. Two satellites have passed the necessary tests. We need to keep this up, and continue to raise our game.”

Trouble on the Equator. The next two Galileo satellites may be ready to ship to Europe’s spaceport in South America by early April. But a large European commercial satellite customer is crowding the schedule, pressuring launch operator Arianespace to lift its satellites first. This could delay the Galileo birds, now set for June rise.

ESA’s year-end plan calls for two more dual-satellite launches in October and December on Russian Soyuz rockets — new partners to the Galileo dance, bringing perhaps new technical connectivity issues.

It’s Not Easy. With Galileo and EGNOS financed to the tune of €7 billion for 2014–2020, expectations are high, yet the European Commission brings a decidely conservative approach to expenditure on new ventures.

“To take a chance, to do what no one has ever done — it’s not easy in a culture that doesn’t like risk,” said ESA director Jean-Jacques Dordain.

Other conference speakers pointed to the securely established European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the first generation of Europe’s GNSS, now fully operational.

Carlo des Dorides, executive director of the GSA, responsible for operating EGNOS through the EGNOS Service Provider (ESSP), elaborated on his big job in 2014: maintaining and improving EGNOS performance and maximizing user adoption, particularly in the aviation, maritime transport, and rail transport sectors.

“The experience we gain through our work with EGNOS will be instrumental as we move towards Galileo service delivery.”

As well as organizational experience with EGNOS, user adoption of the GNSS precursor augurs much for Galileo. With one eye on the present and another on the future, the GSA has a big serving coming to its plate by December: management of a long-awaited, heavily invested system that has been in discussion since the 1990s and in various stages of gestation since 2000.

March 26, 2014
Downstream Dialog, Tests in Europe
With Galileo services set to take effect in December, the two European entities charged with the program are engaging manufacturers — the European Space Agency (ESA) in consumer markets, and the European GNSS Agency (GSA) in the government security sector, respectively.

“We put out an open call to satnav manufacturers offering testing with our laboratory facilities,” said the head of ESA’s Radio Frequency Systems, Payload, and Technology Division. “We have gone on to work with five mass-market chipset makers and a comparable number of professional receiver manufacturers.”

Available ESA facilities include:
- a hybrid localization solution rack for receiver plug-in; it generates simulated constellations of multiple satnav systems along with Wi-Fi or mobile networks. It can also simulate inputs from inertial devices.
- the octobox, a mini anechoic chamber into which phones or mobile devices can be placed, to feed them simulated satnav and cellular network signals.
- a telecommunications and navigation testbed vehicle for field tests, carrying its own extremely accurate receivers to assess the performance of the consumer devices under test.
“Thanks to earlier collaboration with ESA and the EU, the millions of multi-constellation satnav chips we sell annually have been equipped for Galileo signals since 2009,” stated Philip Mattos of ST Microelectronics, whose Teseo II receiver chips are used in satnavs and embedded in cars (see detailed technical article on page 36). “It will take only a software update to enable them to start using Galileo. This cooperation allows us to optimize our software based on access to actual signals and background technical information.”

Regulated Service. The GSA invited European industries and member states’ Public Regulated Service (PRS) authorities to share views and ideas on technologies at the user segment level for the adoption of the PRS. The PRS uses encrypted signals designed to resist jamming, involuntary interference, and spoofing. GSA’s objective is to ensure that PRS service is affordable and secure for all interested users while also ensuring that European industry maintains its competitive edge in the global satellite navigation marketplace.

GSA consultations will focus on:
- steps transforming technologies into products competitive enough in terms of cost, power, dimension;
- euro-manufacturing capability and capacity, especially nanotechnology;
- how to build the manufacturing lines capable of serving PRS user segment needs;
- main domains, elements, and interfaces that will benefit from standardization, allowing for a stronger market adoption of PRS.
March 26, 2014
Galileo Product Showcase

System Design & Test

Galileo Test Bed

Over the past few years, GATE has become well known for being a top-level Galileo test and development range worldwide. It is operated by IFEN GmbH under contract of the owner DLR (German Aerospace Center). The GATE test bed offers a wide range of possibilities for navigation test scenarios with realistic Galileo signals on three frequencies simultaneously in an outdoor environment. Although the test range is, of course, a ground-based infrastructure in the Berchtesgaden Alps, the certified GATE system is able to transmit the original navigation signals from eight “virtual” Galileo satellites. This also includes the simulation of natural influences such as ionosphere or troposphere delays, the adaptation of other signal characteristics, as well as effects of signal strength. Furthermore, GATE includes the capability to induce dedicated “Feared Events” and alerts for one or several satellites of the simulated Galileo constellations.

IFEN

Machine Control

Machine Receiver

The Leica iCON gps 80 GNSS machine receiver offers features and benefits for system integrators looking for powerful, reliable, and future-proof GNSS machine receivers. It increases the overall performance of the iCON machine control system, allowing users to work more productively. Besides Galileo, signals tracked include GPS, GLONASS, and BeiDou. The iCON gps 80 increases the overall performance of the system, so that the uptime of dozers, excavators, drilling and dredging machines, wheel loaders, graders, and pavers is maximized with fast, reliable 3D positioning and productive operation by a perfectly tuned machine control system.

xRTK allows machine guidance in difficult environments, increasing machine productivity. Leica iCON telematics provides remote access to the machine computer for fast data transfer and support.

Leica Geosysems

Simulation

GNSS Signal Generator

The GSG-51 GNSS signal generator provides a fast and cost-effective solution for production testing for Galileo and other GNSS. It emulates a single GNSS signal and can be upgraded for Galileo, as well as to increase the channel count, add receiver trajectory control, and add advanced features such as SBAS (WAAS, EGNOS,MSAS, or GAGAN), white noise generation, or multipath simulation. Its main application is a simple but very fast manufacturing test, to assure that the assembly is correct, that the antenna is properly connected, and that the receiver can receive and identify a satellite signal, for instance, in mobile phones with integrated GNSS receivers.

With a wide RF level range from –65 to –160 dBm, the sensitivity of all types of GNSS receivers can be verified with a minimum of delay. The 60-dB of extra power from normal test scenarios allows for splitting the signal many times.

Spectracom

Space Weather Monitoring

Multi-Constellation Receiver

The PolaRxS is a multi-frequency, multi-constellation receiver dedicated to ionospheric monitoring and space weather applications. It features simultaneous high-quality tracking of all visible signals (L1, L2, L5, E5ab/AltBOC GPS/GLONASS/Galileo/Beidou/SBAS) at low noise levels. The receiver outputs an extensive set of GNSS measurements, including signal phase and intensity at up to 100 Hz, with a phase noise standard deviation (phi60) as low as 0.03 rad.

The A Posteriori Multipath Estimator (APME+) tackles short-delay multipath to enhance the measurement quality, while LOCK+ tracking guarantees robust tracking of rapid signal dynamics during scintillation events. Included tools provide continuous total electron content (TEC) and scintillation indices logging for space weather and ionosphere monitoring.

Septentrio

Personal Tracking

Multi-GNSS Antenna Module for Wireless

The M2M Radionova M10478-A3 antenna module combines a full receiver and antenna on the same ultra-compact module. The highly integrated multi-GNSS RF antenna module is based on the Mediatek MT3333 architecture combined with Antenova’s antenna technology, receiving Galileo as well as GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, QZSS, and SBAS signals. Using patented external matching means this module is suitable to applications from small watches to smartphones and asset trackers. All front-end and receiver components are contained in a single package laminate base module, providing a complete GNSS receiver for optimum performance.

Antenova

Location-Based Services / Wireless

Software Receiver

A software-based GNSS receiver from Galileo Satellite Navigation (GSN) is available on Tensilica ConnX digital signal processor (DSP) cores, for wireless mobile applications. The GSN GNSS receiver running on a Cadence ConnX BBE16 DSP consumes as little as 10 mW of power on a 40-nm process and has the ability to work in lower rates, or snapshots, for ultra-low-power mobile scenarios. It delivers high-sensitivity tracking, offering a seamless GNSS experience in challenging environments. This provides customers with the ability to upgrade their designs to include future satellite systems, including Galileo. With no additional silicon costs and a low cost of deployment, this software-based solution offers a way to implement satellite navigation functionality in many products where it otherwise might be impractical.

Cadence; Galileo Satellite Navigation

Asset Tracking

Hazardous Goods Surveillance

The Ulys-Ex2 beacon is a standalone tracking unit providing worldwide location-based alerts for up to seven years, for monitoring of unpowered mobile assets in potentially explosive atmospheres.

With a Galileo-ready u-blox receiver, it provides monitoring data for tank containers and tank-trailer transport operations, increasing the level of security and safety of explosion-sensitive shipments. The beacon is part of a turnkey, real-time dangerous goods monitoring solution adapted to risk environments, guaranteeing global visibility on routing from the production site to the customer delivery point. It is ATEX Zone 1 certified for Europe — Zone 1 is an atmosphere where a mixture of air and flammable substances in the form of gas, vapor, or mist is likely to occur in normal operating circumstances.

Saphymo

Consumer OEM

Galileo-Ready Module

The Galileo-ready NEO-M8 series of standalone concurrent GNSS modules is built on the u-blox M8 GNSS (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou, QZSS, and SBAS) engine in the NEO form factor. The NEO-M8 series provides high sensitivity and minimal acquisition times while maintaining low system power. It is optimized for cost-sensitive applications, with the NEO-M8N and NEO-M8Q providing high performance and easier RF integration. Sophisticated RF-architecture and interference suppression ensure maximum performance even in GNSS-hostile environments. The NEO-M8 combines a high level of robustness and integration capability with flexible connectivity options. The future-proof NEO-M8N includes an internal Flash that allows simple firmware upgrades for supporting additional GNSS systems, making the NEO-M8 suitable for industrial and automotive applications.

u-blox

Professional OEM

High-Precision Receiver Card

The OEM638 high-precision receiver card tracks all existing and planned constellations including Galileo, GPS, BeiDou, GLONASS, and QZSS. By providing flexible positioning options, from standalone meter-level to AdVanceRTK centimeter-level accuracy, the OEM638 offers the flexibility to meet a wide range of positioning requirements. A powerful API, 4-GB on-board data storage, wide input voltage, and a host of interface options simplifies integration, decreasing time to market and overall system costs. With 240 channels and comprehensive tracking and positioning with all current and planned GNSS signals, the OEM638 is field upgradeable. It offers user configurability for reference station, timing, and other precision positioning applications.

NovAtel

Consumer OEM

Low-Noise Amplifier

The BGA825L6S is a cost-effective low noise amplifier (LNA) for Galileo and other GNSS. It features an ultra-low noise figure, high linearity, high gain, and low current consumption over a wide range of supply voltages from 3.6V to 1.5V. It is designed for GNSS LNA, as it improves sensitivity, provides greater immunity against out-of-band jammer signals, and reduces filtering requirements, which lowers the overall cost of the receiver. The low noise figure of 0.6 dB is a key parameter for GNSS systems as it directly influences the sensitivity of the system, as well as the time-to-first-fix and time-to-subsequent-fix. LNAs with a lower noise figure enable mobile phones with faster GNSS signal fix and higher end-user satisfaction.

Infineon Technologies AG

Simulation

RF Constellation Simulator

The newly released Spirent GSS9000 Multi-Frequency, Multi-GNSS RF Constellation Simulator can simulate signals from all GNSS and regional navigation systems, including Galileo. The GSS9000 offers a four-fold increase in RF signal iteration rate (SIR) over Spirent’s GSS8000 simulator. The GSS9000 SIR is 1000 Hz (1ms), enabling higher dynamic simulations with more accuracy and fidelity. It includes support for restricted and classified signals from the Galileo and GPS systems, as well as advanced capabilities for ultra-high dynamics. It can evaluate resilience of navigation systems to interference and spoofing attacks, and has the flexibility to reconfigure constellations, channels, and frequencies between test runs or test cases.

Hardware changes can be done in the field, supported by the new on-board calibrator module. The GSS9000 is extensible and can support the widest range of carriers, ranging codes, and data streams for the Galileo, GPS, GLONASS, and BeiDou systems, as well as regional/augmentation systems. Multi-antenna/multi-vehicle simulation, for differential-GNSS and attitude determination, and interference/jamming and spoofing testing are also supported.

Spirent

Transportation

eCall-Ready Positioning Chip

The Teseo II (STA8088 series) is a single-chip positioning device capable of receiving signals from multiple satellite navigation systems, including Galileo, GPS, GLONASS, and QZSS. The Teseo II combines high-positioning accuracy and indoor sensitivity performance with powerful processing capabilities and design flexibility, making Teseo II suitable for eCall, ERA-GLONASS, telematics, handheld, consumer, portable navigation devices, marine, and in-car navigation systems. The Teseo II is being tested by the European Space Agency and the European Commission Joint Research Center for eCall approval. The testing campaign is coordinated by the European GNSS Agency as part of its effort to accelerate Galileo adoption.

While the Teseo II Ihas always had the capability to be Galileo-ready, ST is enabling a firmware update from Galileo that benefits consumers and doesn’t require a hardware modification. The Teseo II chips can simultaneously use signals from multiple satellite navigation systems, including the currently available Galileo satellites, and progressively, as future satellites are launched, the full satellite constellation.

STMicroelectronics

Professional OEM

High-Precision Receiver

The 864-channel TRE-3 receiver can simultaneously access all current GNSS signals, with room to spare for multiple-channel tracking of select signals. The new product offers three ultra wide-band (100 MHz) fast sampling and processing, programmable digital filters, and superior dynamic range. After 12-bit digital conversion, nine separate digital filters are shaped for each of the nine bands: GPS L1/Galileo E1, GPS L2, GPS L5/Galileo E5A, GLONASS L1, GLONASS L2, Galileo E5B/BeiDou B2/GLONASS L3, Galileo altBoc, Galilee E6/BeiDouB3/QZSS LEX, and BeiDou B1.

JAVAD GNSS

Interference Monitoring

Modular RF Front-End

The GTEC-RFFE is a flexible, portable, and affordable ultra-wideband recording solution that can be adapted to the reception of all GNSS bands available, including Galileo, supporting up to 80 MHz of RF bandwidth. Because of its modular concept, the GTEC-RFFE not only supports a set of pre-selected configurations, it can be set up for multi-antenna inputs, user selectable bandwidth, intermediate frequencies, and customized ADC sampling rates and resolutions. It is designed for development of software-defined radios and receivers, GNSS multi-system signal analysis and comparison, analysis of atmospheric effects such as ionospheric and tropospheric irregularities and scintillation, and interference monitoring for protecting critical operations and infrastructures.

TeleOrbit

Timing

GNSS Timing Reference Antenna

The GNSS1-TMG-26N is a fixed-mount network timing antenna covering Galileo L1, as well as GPS, GLONASS, and Beidou frequencies. It is designed for long-lasting, trouble-free deployments in congested cell-site applications. The low-noise, high-gain amplifier is suited to address attenuation issues associated with applications requiring longer cable runs. The proprietary quadrifiliar helix design, coupled with multistage filtering, provides superior out-of-band rejection and lower elevation pattern performance than traditional patch antennas.

PCTEL

Professional OEM

Positioning and Heading System

The Trimble BD930 supports both triple frequency from the GPS and GLONASS constellations, plus dual frequency from Galileo and BeiDou. As the number of satellites in the constellations grows, the BD930 is ready to take advantage of the additional signals to deliver fast and reliable RTK initializations for 1–2 centimeter positioning. Different receiver configurations are available, including autonomous GPS L1 to four-constellation triple-frequency RTK.

Trimble

Simulation

Vector Signal Generator

The R&S SMBV100A vector signal generator can generate Galileo, GPS, and GLONASS signals for up to 24 satellites in realtime. With the SMBV-K107 option, the simulator covers the BeiDou standard as well.

The R&S SMBV-K101 option allows developers in the automotive and wireless communications industries to test GNSS receivers for specific effects such as obscuration and multipath propagation. If the GNSS receiver of a navigation instrument or smartphone is located inside a vehicle, testing must also take into account the obscuring effect of the vehicle’s metal body. The R&S SMBV-K102 option can simulate this obscuration and, if required, the additional antenna pattern.

In addition to test scenarios for A-GPS, smartphone developers have the Assisted Galileo (R&S SMBV-K67) and Assisted GLONASS (R&S SMBV-K95) options at their disposal.

Rohde & Schwarz

Signal Amplification

Antenna Amplifier

The GPS35-BNC is an inline antenna amplifier for both the L1 and L2 frequencies of the Galileo, GPS, and GLONASS satellite systems. When connected between the GPS receiver and the GPS antenna, power from the GPS receiver that normally powers the active antenna powers both the active antenna and the GPS-BNC, so no extra power supply is needed. The GPS35-BNC can be used with either active or passive GPS antennas by selecting internal jumpers. The GPS35-BNC provides a gain of 35 dB between 1200 and 1607 MHz. With the GPS35-BNC installed, extra lengths of cable can be used between the antenna and the GPS receiver itself. If low-loss cable is used, cable lengths over 350 meters (1,150 feet) can be used without any degradation to the GPS signal.
The noise figure of the GPS35-BNC is less than 3 dB, and signals in the cellular or mobile frequency bands are rejected by more than 35 dB.

Precision Test Systems

March 26, 2014
Applied EM Offers Anti-Jam Antenna

Applied EM’s anti-jam GPS antenna, AJGPS045, has achieved a four-channel Controlled Radiation Pattern Antenna (CRPA) in a very small size, weight and power (SWAP) particularly suitable for airborne platforms. Its footprint is the same as a standard GPS Fixed Radiation Pattern Antenna (FRPA), the FRPA-3.

This is a key enabler to bringing greatly improved anti-jam performance to smaller platforms and to GPS-equipped platforms that have inadequate anti-jam capability.

When integrated with appropriate four-channel antenna electronics and a military GPS receiver, the AJGPS045 enables L1 and L2 anti-jam performance of typically >80 dB. This is achieved with a passive compact antenna (.7” x 4.6” x 4.6”) that weighs 9 oz.

March 26, 2014
General Dynamics Awarded $26M for GPS III Communications

General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, has been awarded a $26 million contract from Lockheed Martin to support the U.S. Air Force GPS III Network Communications Element (NCE).

General Dynamics is already under contract with Lockheed Martin to produce the NCE for the first four GPS III space vehicles (SV01-SV04), as well as for the procurement of long lead material for the second set of four space vehicles (SV05-SV08). This follow-on contract provides General Dynamics with the funding to complete the NCE for SV05 and SV06.

General Dynamics’ NCE components provide the communications functions for the GPS III satellites, including the ground-to-space command and control channel, the space-to-space inter-satellite channel, and the command and telemetry communications channels within each satellite. NCE components have been delivered for SV01 and SV02. The NCEs for SV03 and SV04 are scheduled for delivery by June 2014.

“We bring more than a half-century of experience in the spacecraft communications and navigation domain to this program,” said Kirstan Rock, vice president and general manager of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance at General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. “We look forward to continuing working with Lockheed Martin to deliver high-quality, reliable and affordable solutions to the Air Force to advance their mission.”

The Air Force’s next-generation GPS III satellites will improve position, navigation and timing services and provide advanced anti-jam capabilities yielding superior system security, accuracy and reliability.

GPS III is a critically important program for the U.S. Air Force, affordably replacing the aging constellation of GPS satellites currently in orbit. Compared to prior GPS vehicles, GPS III satellites will deliver three times better accuracy, provide up to eight times more powerful anti-jamming capabilities and include enhancements that extend spacecraft life 25 percent further. GPS III-series satellites also will carry a new civil signal designed to be interoperable with other international global navigation satellite systems, enhancing civilian user connectivity.

March 25, 2014
EGNOS Satellite Launched Successfully

The satellite ASTRA 5B, which will become part of the European Commission’s European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), launched successfully after a one-day delay. It lifted off on March 22 aboard an Ariane 5 ECA rocket at 2204 GMT (6:04 p.m. EDT) from the Guiana Space Center near Kourou, French Guiana.

Officials from Arianespace, the French launch services company, declared the mission a success following the rocket’s deployment of the ASTRA 5B and Amazonas 4A communications satellites about a half-hour after liftoff, reports Spaceflight Now.

ASTRA 5B carries a hosted L-band payload for EGNOS. It will also extend transponder capacity and geographical reach over Eastern Europe and neighboring markets for DTH, direct-to-cable, and contribution feeds to digital terrestrial television networks.

“Today’s successful launch, the 59th in a row for Ariane 5, confirms the unrivaled reliability and availability of the European launcher,” said Stephane Israel, chairman and CEO of Arianespace. “We take particular pride in being able to offer this service excellence to two leading European operators, SES and Hispasat, both long-standing customers of Arianespace, as well as the European Commission, which has an EGNOS satellite navigation payload integrated on the ASTRA 5B satellite.”

The spacecraft, based on the Airbus Defence and Space Eurostar E3000 satellite bus, is flying with a hosted L-band navigation payload for EGNOS, which augments GPS navigation signals over Europe for specialty users such as the aviation and surveying industries.

“EGNOS will be able to continue to provide valuable positioning services to users all over Europe, be it in the field of aviation, transport or agriculture,” said Christoph Kautz, deputy head of the European Commission’s enterprise and industry unit.

ASTRA 5B was built by Airbus Defence and Space (formerly Astrium) in Toulouse, France, using a Eurostar E3000 platform. The multi-mission satellite will be located at 31.5 degrees East.

March 25, 2014
PeopleNet Launches Fleet Solutions for Energy Services Suite

PeopleNet, a Trimble company and provider of fleet mobility technology that optimizes performance and decision-making management, has launched a mapping and navigation solution for its Energy Services suite, serving U.S. fleets in the upstream and midstream sectors.

“Our Energy Services suite capitalizes on our proven fleet mobility solutions that increase efficiency, safety and compliance for all oilfield service segments, including producers, oilfield construction and well service companies, as well as haulers of fluid and crude oil. In addition, we’re leveraging our parent and sister companies’ industry-standard lone-worker, mapping and navigation technologies to fast-track development of new services to continue improving operations for Energy Services fleets,” said David Buhl, leader of PeopleNet’s dedicated Energy Services Division.

PeopleNet’s new Energy Services mapping and navigation solutions are based on exclusive, detailed maps of private and leased oilfield roads that facilitate vehicle navigation to and from well sites, coordination of disparate workforces to promote efficiency, location monitoring of equipment to ensure vehicles are on the correct route for least-cost routing. The Oil and Gas Map Portal is a web-based application used by back-office dispatch personnel to manage the navigation needs of vehicles and includes reporting, dashboards, and scorecards that help manage compliance with producer-landowner road-usage agreements.

CoPilot Oil and Gas Navigation is an in-cab application that uses oil and gas field mapping for providing turn-by-turn directions to the driver to enable on-time arrivals and scheduling. Location data, including wells, is installed onto the in-cab device and is accessible in the points of interest menu. When a location is selected, the application provides turn-by-turn directions to the driver.

A growing number of energy services fleets are using PeopleNet technology to promote on-time schedules, enhance service levels and improve safety/compliance, including Gibson, Missouri Basin Well Service, Nuverra Environmental Solutions, Rockwater, and Tankstar USA.

These new services are based on reliable two-way messaging and GPS, supported by tri-mode communications (cellular, satellite and Wi-Fi). They are being added to PeopleNet’s current Energy Services offerings, which include: Crude Workflow for improving driver efficiency; eDriverLogs HOS application with oil field regulations; Speed Gauge speed monitoring; and Automated Fuel Tax reporting for eliminating manual trip sheets.

March 24, 2014
Dutch Company Powers Galileo Satellites

Solar arrays for a Galileo Full Operational Capability (FOC) satellite at the Dutch Space company near Leiden in the Netherlands. A pair of 5 m-long solar arrays supply 1.9 kilowatts of power – about the same as an average household’s consumption. The side of the solar array normally left in shadow is seen here.

By the European Space Agency

As they bathe the ground below them in test navigation messages, Europe’s Galileo satellites are kept alive by the Sun.

A pair of 5 m-long solar arrays supply 1.9 kilowatts of power – about the same as an average household’s consumption. These arrays are sourced from the Dutch Space company in the Netherlands.

Located just outside Leiden, a short drive from ESA’s Technical Centre, the Airbus Defence and Space subsidiary is based in what might appear to be a standard office building, the only clue to its space-based focus being an Ariane 5 frame outside.

Inside its specialized facilities include a class 100 000 cleanroom, space simulation equipment and a “Very Large Sun Simulator” — a giant camera flash able to test the electrical performance of the solar arrays the company supplies to about two thirds of ESA missions — which includes all Galileo satellites commissioned to date, as well as one of their two GIOVE predecessors.

“Think of us as the prime contractor for Galileo’s solar panels,” explains senior project manager Jan Zuidam, overseeing the work for Dutch Space. “We build nothing directly ourselves, but — working with a network of partner companies — oversee the panels’ design, engineering management, assembly and testing, all performed here in these buildings.

The composite panel substrates, sourced from local Dutch company Airborne Composite, are equipped with solar cells in the Airbus Defence and Space facility in Ottobrunn, Germany, with the photovoltaic cells themselves sourced from German company Azur Space Solar Power. It is a bit like the way silicon chips are mounted on printed circuit boards, only on a much bigger scale.”

The cells in question are state-of-the-art “triple junction” gallium arsenide designs, with sandwiched layers optimised for different segments of the solar spectrum.

At Ottobrunn these cells are interconnected together into “strings” that run the length of each panel. The bare cells have also have protective cover glass added at this stage, without which they would be quickly tarnished by the radiation and unfiltered sunlight prevailing in orbit.

Testing

Before delivery to Dutch Space, each panel is thermal vacuum tested at IABG, Germany, followed by the absolute performance measurement and inspection.

Solar arrays for a Galileo Full Operational Capability (FOC) satellite at the Dutch Space company near Leiden in the Netherlands. A pair of 5 m-long solar arrays supply 1.9 kilowatts of power – about the same as an average household’s consumption. The side of the solar array normally left in shadow is seen here.

This includes flash testing to illuminate all the cells at once to check the arrays meet the set power requirements, as well as electrical luminescence testing, where an electrical current is run through each string to make them glow red, basically reversing the way solar cells usually work. Visual inspection is typically enough to ensure all connections are properly linked.

At Dutch Space, the panels from Ottobrunn are integrated together with the mechanisms, typically sourced from local Dutch companies assembled and tested by Dutch Space, into complete solar array wings.

The completed wings are suspended on specially weighted deployment rigs, to compensate for the presence of gravity the 29 kg wings are not designed to endure. Here alignment testing is performed, to check the wings will unfold in a straight line as planned.

Galileo solar arrays being inspected in the Dutch Space cleanroom. The panels received from Ottobrunn in Germany are integrated together with the mechanisms, typically sourced from local Dutch companies assembled and tested by Dutch Space, into complete solar array wings. The completed wings are then suspended on specially weighted deployment rigs, to compensate for the presence of gravity the 29 kg wings are not designed to endure. Here alignment testing is performed, to check the wings will unfold in a straight line as planned.

“Alignment testing involves the use of reference mirrors and theodolites to check the arrays’ straightness, down to a scale of a tenth of a millimeter at wing tip,” Jan explains.

“In orbit, any bad alignment would be felt by the satellite’s attitude control system, and might even reduce a satellite’s operational life. We also make stiffness tests, which involves hanging weights on a rope on the end of the array, to see what the resulting displacement is. Flex to 100 mm is expected, but not more.”

A large‘ambient pressure temperature test chamber can simulate the rapid temperature swings the arrays will experience as they pass between orbital daylight and darkness. A much smaller cabinet does the same in vacuum conditions, and is used for accelerated lifetime testing to simulate the total life of the arrays, although only for a 50 x 50 cm sample array.

Dutch Space has been designing its Advanced Rigid Array family of arrays for space missions since the 1970s, Jan recalls: “Each mission has different requirements. Low-Earth orbiting arrays such as those for ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle need protection from erosive atomic oxygen, found at the top of the atmosphere, while deep space missions like Rosetta or the US Dawn spacecraft require low-intensity low-temperature LILT solar cells to go on producing power far from the Sun.

Deployment of the solar wings on the first Galileo satellite ‘Full Operational Capability’ satellite is shown being checked at ESA’s ESTEC technical hub in the Netherlands at the end of June 2013. The navigation satellite’s pair of 1 x 5 m solar wings, carrying more than 2500 state-of-the-art gallium arsenide solar cells, will power the satellite during its 12-year working life.

“Galileo flies in medium-Earth orbit, and in the process passes through Earth’s radiation belts. This heightened radiation exposure implies a higher loss factor of cells, which is accounted for with higher capacity at the start. We design solar arrays based on their end-of-life performance — how can we ensure they will still meet mission requirements after 12 years in orbit?”

Galileo’s solar arrays are also designed to guard against potential harmful electrostatic discharge — a spark caused by the build-up of static — by introducing gaps any charge cannot traverse, as well as other voltage safeguards.

“As a safety margin, Galileo’s arrays can go on operating satisfactorily with the loss of one complete string of cells.”

The completed arrays are sent on to Full Operational Capability (FOC) prime contractor OHB in Bremen, Germany for integration onto the satellites. Although this is not quite the end of the story for Dutch Space.

“We have a 100% record of successfully deployed wings in space and we’d like to keep it that way,” Jan comments. “So we provide training to our customers on handling and storing the wings, and especially in working with our unique hold-down system that keeps the solar arrays stacked on either side of the satellite during launch.”

The panels are delicate, composed of just four layers of carbon fibre, and would break easily if struck hard. They are therefore tied tight against the satellite during the violence of launch.

The Kevlar restraint cables are then severed by thermal knives, with two in place per each hold-down point.

“The Kevlar is weakened gradually instead of suddenly snapping,” Jan explains. “This reduces the amount of shock the arrays experience, compared to the pyros or unwinding rods that other companies use. The arrays then unfold gradually due to springs in the hinges, the process taking a few minutes in all.

“But the system depends on correct tensioning at the outset, which is why we like to be there in person for this point.”

A Galileo Full Operational Capability (FOC) satellite, following on from the first four Galileo satellites already in orbit. A total of 22 FOC satellites are on the way, built by OHB in Germany with navigation payloads from Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. in the UK.

Dutch Space is well ahead on its Galileo obligations, with 88 substrate panels manufactured and 72 panels equipped with solar cells ready for wing integration. They are carefully stored in gaseous nitrogen until needed, separately from each other for the most part, with integration performed before delivery.“Our continued involvement with Galileo has been very important to the company,” reflects Jan.

“Dutch Space has worked on batch production previously, such as with solar arrays for the ATV and the US Orbital company’s Cygnus supply vehicle to the International Space Station, but the scale of Galileo is even larger.

We have had a valuable learning curve, finding ways to optimize our production flow and working methods so that we’ve been able to reduce the time needed by 50% from the initial satellite to the latest. And all the things we learn should make us leaner and cheaper for future one-off missions as well.”

March 24, 2014
Russia Launches another GLONASS-M Satellite

Russia has launched another GLONASS-M satellite into space, reports Spaceflight Now. The launch occurred on Sunday. The Soyuz 2-1b rocket lifted off at 22:54 GMT (6:54 p.m. EDT) from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome about 500 miles north of Moscow.

The GLONASS-M satellite, designated No. 54, was manufactured by ISS Reshetnev and is designed for a seven-year operational life. A spokesperson with the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces told Interfax the spacecraft was communicating with ground controllers and functioning normally.

Five GLONASS satellites are scheduled for launch this year.

March 24, 2014
Interoperability Working Group Issues November Meeting Report

The report of Working Group A on Compatibility and Interoperability, held November 11-13, 2013, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, is now available as a downloadable PDF. It is also available on the ICG Information Portal.

March 24, 2014