Category: Galileo

Global GNSS constellations: Why 2 + 2 equals more than 4
The tremendous benefits of having four complete GNSS constellations

In 2020, with the completion of China’s BeiDou-3 (aka BDS) and Europe’s Galileo, the number of available global navigation satellite system (GNSS) constellations doubled.

Analogously to the addition of GLONASS to GPS a quarter century earlier, but much more so, this sharp increase in the number of available satellites and frequencies greatly improved the precision of satellite-based positioning, the speed of first fix, and the confidence in the results — especially in GNSS-challenged places, such as under thick canopy and in deep urban canyons.

Additionally, this new ability to track three or four GNSS constellations makes the overall positioning solution more resilient to malicious RF interference (jamming and spoofing), to accidental GNSS service disruptions such as Galileo’s one-week service outage in July 2019, and to deliberate withholding of service such as might occur in times of war.

While all this may make little practical difference to a driver needing to know which highway exit to take or to a pedestrian looking for the nearest pharmacy, it is very valuable in high-end applications, such as surveying and construction. In fact, surveyors who have transitioned to using all the available constellations are ecstatic.

This month’s cover story, on the benefits of having four complete GNSS constellations, is in two parts. First, Oliver Montenbruck and Peter Steigenberger discuss “the practical relevance and implications of having four GNSS in parallel for both mass-market and high-end users.” Next, I present the comments of three surveyors and a receiver manufacturer:
- Gavin Schrock, PLS, is a practicing land surveyor, the operator of a cooperative real-time GNSS network in Washington state, and a technology writer
- James Richards is the senior land and utility surveyor at Benchmark Surveys in Venny Bridge, UK
- Choice Sterling is the survey manager at Kiewit Corporation in Federal Way, Washington
- Xiaohua Wen is the CEO and founder of Tersus GNSS, a manufacturer of GNSS surveying receivers based in Australia.
(Satellites from left) GPS: In July 1995, GPS achieved full operational capability (FOC). GLONASS: In December 1995, the (then) Soviet system achieved FOC. BeiDou: On June 23, 2020, China launched the final satellite of the BeiDou-3 constellation. Galileo: The constellation has 21 usable satellites.(Credit: Satellites from public sources; background image: NASA/Chaykovsky Igor/Shutterstock.com)

See also

GNSS today: A four-leaf clover, by Oliver Montenbruck and Peter Steigenberger

How land surveyors grapple with rapid evolution, discussion with surveyor Gavin Schrock

Thoughts from surveying experts

James Richards
Senior Land and Utility surveyor
Benchmark Surveys, Venny Bridge, UK

James Richards, Benchmark Surveys

What kinds of surveying projects do you run?
We run many different types of surveying projects. From small single-story bungalow extensions and redevelopment to development of new home sites of several hundred acres. We cover land, underground utility, and measured-building surveys of any size project, using the latest equipment in total stations, laser scanners, drones, GPS receivers, ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and electromagnetic location (EML).

How have you transitioned to using multiple constellations?
Ordnance Survey benchmarks in the UK are no longer maintained. Therefore, it has been a must to move forward with the surveying world and use multi-constellation GNSS equipment. We have stayed at the forefront of GNSS receivers, starting with a Topcon GRS1 then moving onto a Trimble R10 and a Topcon HiPer SR. Now, I feel we’ve taken another leap with the Trimble R12i, working in areas where we previously did not even consider using a GNSS receiver.

How does the availability of four complete GNSS constellations, plus two regional ones, benefit your work?
The availability of four complete GNSS constellations and two regional ones gives us more reliability as well as improved position and time accuracy in the data that we receive. It also gives us better coverage over the entire UK, including near buildings and under foliage. The Trimble R12i has 672 available channels, which makes it future-proof to new frequencies and additional space vehicles.

Choice Sterling
Survey manager, Kiewit Corporation
Federal Way, Washington

What kinds of surveying projects do you run?
I am the survey manager on $1–3 billion mega projects, ranging from bridges and highways to tunnels and rail, including a couple of projects for the U.S. Department of Defense.

How have you transitioned to using multiple constellations?
The use of multiple constellations became available as we adopted technologies that could capitalize on their availability. Through the latest hardware and software, we have begun leveraging GNSS to a greater magnitude than we would have just a few years back.

How does the availability of four complete GNSS constellations, plus two regional ones, benefit your work?
Not long ago, the use of GPS for construction staking was an extremely risky proposition given its unreliability, primarily in the vertical component, and lack of confidence in its horizontal accuracy. With residuals exceeding most construction tolerances, GPS was primarily utilized for earthwork or to establish geodetic pairs that could then be traversed to establish control for more precise work. With the utilization of multiple GNSS constellations, we have gained confidence in the accuracy of our results and have started leveraging GPS for construction staking where we were once not willing to take the risk.

Having the ability to leverage GPS under a canopy of trees or against structures or walls has proved invaluable when running traverses or levels, typically enabling us to use a single person rather than a two-person crew. Increased confidence in repeatability and accuracy while using GPS has been a game changer when working on projects where efficiency and cost management are of the greatest importance.

Xiaohua Wen
CEO and Founder, Tersus GNSS

Xiaohua Wen, Tersus GNSS

How have you transitioned to manufacturing multiple-constellation GNSS receivers?
Early in 2016, we produced a GNSS receiver evolution road map to take advantage of GPS/GLONASS modernization, the continuing development of Galileo and QZSS, and the completion of BeiDou-3. In 2019, we released our current GNSS receiver, which has 576 tracking channels and supports all five major GNSS constellations (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou-3 and QZSS) and triple-band broadcasts (GPS L1+L2C+L2P+L5, GLO G1+G2+G3, GAL E1+E5a+E5b, BDS B1+B2a+B2b and QZSS L1+L2C+L5). We expect to release our next generation receiver, with 832 channels, in February 2022. It will support all available constellations (GPS, GLO, GAL, BDS, QZSS, IRNSS/NavIC, SBAS) and all civil signals, including the AltBoc and AceBoc.

How does the availability of four complete GNSS constellations, plus two regional ones, benefit your end users?
The most significant advantage of modern GNSS receivers is their robust high-accuracy performance with the aiding of the new constellations and signals, especially in harsh GNSS environments, such as deep canyons and heavy foliage. It greatly extended the RTK fix capability, and now reliable GNSS RTK fix solutions can be easily achieved in areas where it was impossible to do in the past.

In the past, multipath always has been a problem for RTK GNSS receivers, as it might cause blunder errors. The improved RTK fix reliability based on robust RTK integrity monitoring takes advantage of the redundancy of observations to identify and isolate deteriorated observations and confirm the fixed result. Additionally, RTK achieves RTK fix solutions faster and maintains the RTK fix solutions easier with better accuracy than before.

Compared to the dual-band (L1+L2) of GPS plus GLONASS, the triple-band (and multi-band) can allow long-range RTK capability, which can provide reliable RTK solutions with a remote GNSS base station far from the 20–30 km base and rover separation of the past. It also will provide more confidence in RTK positioning during the coming ionospheric disturbance peak in 2023.
October 18, 2021
GNSS constellations create four strong winds

Matteo Luccio

First, there was one. In July 1995, the U.S. Air Force declared the Global Positioning System had met all the requirements for full operational capability (FOC). Soon thereafter, there were two. In December of that same year, Russia’s Globalnaya Navigazionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema (Global Navigation Satellite System, or GLONASS), also achieved FOC. For a quarter century, that was it.

Then, last year, the number doubled, as both the European Union’s Galileo and China’s BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS, named after the Big Dipper asterism, which is known in Chinese as Beidou) achieved FOC.

The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS, aka Navigation Indian Constellation, or NavIC, which means “sailor” or “navigator” in Hindi) and Japan’s Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS, also known as Michibiki) are not global yet, but plan to become so. Currently, NavIC is an autonomous regional satellite navigation system, and NavIC-based trackers are compulsory on commercial vehicles in India. QZSS currently complements GPS to improve coverage in East Asia and Oceania, but Japan plans to have an operational constellation of seven satellites for autonomous capability by 2023. The Korea Positioning System (KPS) plans to join the party by 2035.

Who’s next? Will it be another country or a private company? Given that the state-sponsored systems are free to end users, I don’t see what the business model would be for a private GNSS constellation, unless it were to piggyback on one built mainly for another purpose.

Surveyors who have begun to routinely use three or more constellations are over the moon. One, quoted in this month’s cover story, recalls that “the use of GPS for construction staking was an extremely risky proposition” because its residuals exceeded most construction tolerances. Using multiple GNSS constellations, however, has increased confidence in the accuracy of results to the point that some construction companies are relying on GNSS receivers for staking. Additionally, multi-constellation receivers can now increasingly be used under tree canopies and against structures, whether natural or built.

Whatever their mix of military, political and commercial motivations for building, deploying and operating their own GNSS constellations in addition to the original two, the European Union, China, India, Japan, Korea and whichever entity may follow are greatly improving satellite-based positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) for all users everywhere — by increasing accuracy, shortening the time to first fix, and making GNSS more impervious to jamming and spoofing.

In 1978, the year that the U.S. Department of Defense launched the first NAVSTAR GPS satellite (“NAVSTAR” was later dropped from the system’s name), Neil Young sang “Four Strong Winds” (originally written by Ian Tyson and performed by him with his wife Sylvia as the Canadian folk-duo Ian and Sylvia).

Now, GNSS has “four strong winds,” two lighter ones and several more breezes to follow. As a sailor and a navigator, I welcome them heartily. As this magazine’s editor-in-chief, I don’t mind that, like Jeep, Kleenex, Popsicle and Xerox, GPS probably will stick in popular culture as a generic term for global satellite navigation systems way past its accurate description of what is in the box.

Matteo Luccio | Editor-in-Chief
[email protected]

October 1, 2021
Celestia Technologies Group joins European move for long-range drones

The ADACORSA Project vision. (Credit: ADACORSA)

Celestia Technologies Group (CTG) is taking part in the ADACORSA project, a European initiative designed to unlock the potential of long-range and beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) drones and give Europe a world-class drone industry.

ADACORSA — Airborne Data Collection on Resilient System Architecture — is a major collaborative project launched in May 2020 that aims to demonstrate the safety and efficiency of drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in extended out-of-line-of-sight operation ranges.

Specifically, it draws on European expertise in developing sensor and communication technologies for UAVs to underpin their role and reliable capability in long-range applications, including observation, analysis and transport, taking them one step further toward being integrated into conventional airspace.

ADASCORA also seeks to increase public and regulatory acceptance of modern UAV or drone technology. More than 49 specialist companies from 12 European countries are expected to contribute know-how and practical support. The project also aims to research and develop innovative components and systems for airborne observation and detection, telecommunication and data processing along the electronics value-chain.

Task Forces Established

To meet ADACORSA’s ambitious targets, task forces have been set up, one of which will be led by CTG. The company will lead the development of electronic components for reliable and fail-operational environment perception and run one project demonstrator designed to integrate unmanned aircraft systems safely into the common European airspace and ensure that they operate correctly in a multi-unmanned aircraft system environment.

CTG is a Dutch supplier and part of a pan-European company group providing innovative technology products, systems and services to space, aerospace, defense, telecommunications and scientific markets.

Galileo + EGNOS Transponder

CTG will use its expertise in on-board UAV electronics to develop a lightweight, high-performance transponder capable of sending and receiving accurate identification and location data for unmanned aerial vehicles.

Positioning will be based on Galileo, supplemented by its European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), allowing all airspace users to know the location of the vehicle and contribute to safety while supporting other on-board systems such as detect-and-avoid equipment.

The transponder will be based on conventional aviation technologies such as Mode S Interrogator and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) and will integrate new concepts including network identification, meaning the vehicle can fly safely in various scenarios. These include in locations close to airports, in drone fleet operations and within the U-Space environment. U-space is a set of European services and procedures designed to support safe, efficient and secure access to airspace for drones.

ADACORSA has received funding from the ECSEL Joint Undertaking (JU) under grant agreement No. 876019. The JU receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program and Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Romania, France, Sweden, Cyprus, Greece, Lithuania, Portugal, Italy, Finland and Turkey.

September 29, 2021
Spirent and Qascom collaborate on OSNMA simulation tools for Galileo

SimOSNMA provides vital test tools for Galileo’s emerging end-to-end security protocol

Spirent Communications plc and Qascom have announced a simulation test solution for the Galileo Open Service Navigation Message Authentication (OSNMA) mechanism.

SimOSNMA is designed to work with Spirent’s GNSS simulation platforms to test OSNMA signal conformance, which will bring new levels of robustness for both civilian and commercial GNSS uses.

The GSS9000 test system. (Photo: Spirent)

SimOSNMA provides developers with new simulation tools to test for OSNMA, the security protocol that enables GNSS receivers to verify the authenticity of signals distributed from the Galileo satellite constellation. Designed to combat spoofing, OSNMA ensures the data received is authentic and has not been modified in any way. It is now completing the test phase before its formal launch.

SimOSNMA enables developers to simulate and test OSNMA signals and features, allowing GNSS receiver manufacturers and application developers to accelerate and assure development programs.

Qascom has been a significant contributor to the development of Galileo OSNMA. The company helped create the main test vectors for early testing and led the Position Authenticated Tachograph for OSNMA Launch (PATROL) project, which is the European Union Agency for the Space Program (EUSPA) procurement looking at the implementation of OSNMA into automotive and mass-market GNSS receivers.

“During the development of the first OSNMA receiver prototype, we needed a tool that would allow us to run tests in a controlled and repeatable environment, generate reference data, test corner cases and system events that seldomly occur in reality,” said Carlo Sarto, head of Security Engineering Domain Area. Qascom. “SimOSNMA will allow industries and agencies to speed up the development and qualification of their systems.”

Since the inception of the Galileo project, Spirent has provided crucial simulation and test capabilities to many of the key organizations and projects responsible for development of the European Space Agency (ESA) program.

SimOSNMA is available now for Spirent GSS7000 and GSS9000 platforms.

September 22, 2021
Galileo, OneWeb and the UK’s sovereignty way forward

A discussion with Admiral Lord West

Admiral Lord Alan West of Spithead has served the United Kingdom as First Sea Lord and led the government’s efforts for counter terrorism and cybersecurity. He has been a member of the House of Lords since 2007 and has stayed engaged with defence and maritime issues. RNT Foundation President Dana A. Goward spoke with him in early September about the UK’s way forward for GPS-like services.

DG: The UK government has been talking for years about the nation’s vulnerability to disruption of space-based signals such as those from GPS and Galileo. What is being done about it?

LW: Unfortunately, the government is not being as transparent as we might like on this. I do know from comments made in the House of Lords that there is a group developing a strategy. Also, that the Cabinet Office — our equivalent of the National Security Council in the United States — is deciding who is to be in charge and how things will be run.

I have heard the strategy group will propose a mix of technologies such as has been discussed in the United States. The idea of having several different systems, I am sure, is so that something interfering with one won’t disrupt them all.

This is all supposed to published in November. But I am concerned that government distractions with COVID, Afghanistan and other issues will delay that.

DG: What about the OneWeb project? That doesn’t seem to be waiting for a November announcement. And there is talk it may provide GPS-like timing and navigation services.

LW: OneWeb is moving forward, but at present it is only about 5G and making it available more quickly and broadly. There may be a OneWeb Phase 2 that includes modified or additional satellites to provide positioning, navigation and timing (PNT), but that is to be decided.

Admiral Sir Alan West, then First Sea Lord, is pictured with the official chart of anchorages for the International Fleet Review. (Photo: DP Kilfeather’s book Trafalgar 200 Through the Lens, Queen Elizabeth II 80th Birthday Edition, CC BY-SA 2.5)

DG: How about the UK rejoining Galileo?

LW: Actually, that makes a lot of sense from a practical point of view for both the UK and Europe. Unfortunately, there were a lot of hurt feelings on the continent with Brexit, some EU leaders seemed to be in punishment mode, and expulsion from Galileo was part of the fallout. I think that in due course as tempers cool, we will fully re-engage with the European Space Agency.

DG: So, no UK project for a GPS equivalent?

LW: The government allocated £90 million to that, which enabled a thorough look at the idea but was woefully inadequate to even start a project. Doing a British version of GPS or Galileo would be hugely expensive and doesn’t make sense. There are better, cheaper ways of getting what we need.

DG: And what does the UK need? What is the goal?

LW: We need several things.

First, we need a global capability that is ours, or that we are closely partnered in, to support the UK’s worldwide military and economic interests.

We also need to have something in place so that, even if space is denied to us — and that is getting to be more and more of a threat each day — we can keep our industries, critical infrastructure and economy going at home.

And third, we need a resilient PNT capability as a foundation for current applications, and to build on for such things as autonomy, intelligent transportation, and the like.

DG: So how do you get there?

LW: For the global bit, the OneWeb, and perhaps an even closer partnership with the United States on GPS.

At home, we definitely need a sovereign capability for when space is denied by solar weather or our adversaries. Also to be a check on space signals because our adversaries and criminals are spoofing them more and more.

I have always thought eLoran was a good choice. The UK pioneered its development and had the world’s first operational system in 2015. It is really hard to interfere with the signal, and there are other features that could be added to it that would make it even more robust.

There was a very interesting report called MarRINav put out last year about what UK maritime needs to ensure it can navigate regardless of whether the satellites are working or not. They came up with a reasonably inexpensive combination of systems anchored by eLoran.

By the way, it is interesting that the MarRINav study was funded by the European Space Agency. They seem to understand that satellites are not the be all and end all for PNT services.

DG: That all seems pretty straightforward and the right thing to do. What’s standing in the way?

LW: Well, so few people understand the problem. The population as a whole is almost completely unaware. At some level government understands all 13 of our critical infrastructure sectors could be impacted, but the people senior enough to drive action have dozens of other issues to deal with that probably seem more urgent.

DG: I wonder what it will take to make it seem urgent enough.

LW: Let’s hope the wakeup call is something short of a national disaster.

September 15, 2021
European project researches automated map creation for cars
Image: DedMityay/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images

A new European project is researching automated collection of geodata and production of high-definition maps.

The GAMMS project is funded by the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), and will take place until the end of 2023. Galileo will be the main enabler of GAMMS, given its precise, multipath-resistant measurements and its upcoming high-accuracy service (HAS).

A European consortium, led by the French map service provider GEOSAT, will investigate how the combination of self-driving mapping cars (autonomous mobile-mapping systems) and artificial intelligence-based mapping software can automate the production of high-definition maps.

These maps are used by driverless vehicles and need to be provably accurate, complete and up to date. Fast, sustainable production of trustworthy maps is the goal.

Consortium members include:
- GEOSAT — map-making and machine learning
- GeoNumerics — multi-sensor fusion and accurate navigation
- Sensible4 — robotics and autonomous driving
- DEIMOS Engenharia — GNSS and Galileo receiver development
- EPFL — sensor and vehicle dynamic modelling
- Solid Potato — multi-spectral laser scanning
- PILDO Labs — regulatory specialists
- ENIDE — communication specialists
“It is as challenging as interesting to bring together the geodetic estimation methods with the navigation ones in multi-sensor systems powered by EGNSS and its differentiators, VDMs (vehicle data management systems) and visual features,” said Marta Blázquez, responsible for GAMMS at GeoNumerics. “GAMMS will boost the development of NEXA, our trajectory determination platform, and GENA, our adjustment platform for dynamic networks, in the direction of trustworthy navigation.”

GeoNumerics is responsible for computing the mapping vehicle trajectory (a time series of position, velocity and attitude coordinates) by integrating the manifold of sensors available in a mapping vehicle.

Measurements of inertial units and atomic clocks will be fused with measurements of all available navigation satellites (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou), odometers, cameras and laser scanners. For this purpose, GeoNumerics’ GENA and NEXA systems will be further developed to include new sensor mathematical models and to improve its robust estimation methods.
September 1, 2021
Galileo G2 navigation payloads begin testing

Testing on Galileo’s second-generation hardware has begun.

Test versions of the satellites’ navigation payloads is undergoing evaluation by Airbus Defence and Space at its Ottobrunn facility in Germany and by Thales Alenia Space at the ESTEC technical center in the Netherlands of the European Space Agency (ESA).

Known as the Galileo Payload Testbeds (GPLTBs), these are development models of the navigation payloads intended for the Galileo Second Generation (G2) satellites. The navigation antennas of the testbed payloads are being testing to check whether they meet the ambitious performance levels set for the G2 satellites.

Instead of being assembled from space-ready components like an actual satellite payload, the GPLTBs are built from electronic parts placed in test racks, with a proof-of-concept version of a navigation antenna attached.

“The goal with these test campaigns is to prove their design concepts early, and anticipate any technical issues that might arise as early as possible,” said Cédric Magueur, ESA’s payload manager for the Thales G2 satellites.

“These campaigns also make it possible to develop and validate new performance measurements concepts for these new generation of complex navigation payloads,” said Dirk Hannes, ESA’s payload manager for the Airbus G2 satellites. “This will allow us to optimize the production efficiency of the flight model series.”

The second satellite in the European Data Relay System (EDRS) undergoes tests at Airbus’s Compact Antenna Test Range facility. (Photo: ESA)

“Results from the testing will feed into the up-coming Preliminary Design Review for the new satellites, backing up the analyses by the companies with solid measurements,” Cédric said. “Such early testing also supports the ambitious timescale for the development and construction of G2 satellites, with the first satellites planned to reach orbit by the middle of this decade.”

There are 26 Galileo satellites now in orbit; deployment of 12 more will begin by the end of this year. Next will come the first 12 G2 satellites, featuring enhanced navigation signals and fully digital payloads. The new generation will be made up of two independent families of satellites meeting the same performance requirements, produced by Thales Alenia Space in Italy and Airbus Defence and Space in Germany.

Airbus Defence and Space’s GPLTB is undergoing radiated testing at the company’s Ottobrunn facility, inside a Compact Antenna Test Range (CATR). Meanwhile, the Thales Alenia Space GPLTB is about to start testing inside ESTEC’s own Hybrid European Radio Frequency and Antenna Test Zone (Hertz) chamber. The metal-walled chambers are isolated from external radio interference, with inner walls studded with foam pyramids to minimize radio-frequency signal reflections, mimicking the void of space.

“Up until now all GPLTB testing has taken place by plugging them into test boards,” Cédric said. “These test campaigns mark the first time that their performances will be confirmed in terms of radiating signals. In our first phase we will perform near-field measurements directly around the antenna to measure all the characteristics of the signal shape, to check it matches previous conductance tests. Then, via computation, we can derive its far-field performance.”

In the second test phase, the actual far-field measurements will be performed using another feature of the chambers, a pair of paraboloid reflectors. In this way, the signal from the testbed can be reshaped as if it had traveled the long distance that actual Galileo signals need to travel, from an altitude of 23,222 km down to Earth’s surface.

At Airbus, the testing is being undertaken in reverse order, with the far-field measurements taking place before performing the near-field measurements.

August 6, 2021
GMV awarded contract for Galileo HAS data generator

Image: EUSPA

GMV has been awarded a contract for the implementation of the Galileo High Accuracy data generator (HADG), which will be the facility in charge of generating the high-accuracy corrections data to enable the provision of the Galileo High Accuracy Service (HAS).

The contract was awarded by the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA).

HADG will ensure the continuous provision of HAS data with a proper rate, accuracy, availability, continuity and latency. The data will encompass orbit and clock corrections, biases, quality indicators and service parameters.

The HADG contract addresses a key infrastructure development of the Galileo program. The Galileo HAS, together with the Open Service Authentication (OSNMA) and the Commercial Authentication Service (CAS), is one of Galileo’s stand-out services, setting it apart from GPS or GLONASS.

The HAS will be an open-access service based on the provision of high-accuracy corrections transmitted in the Galileo E6-B signal (E6, data component), at a rate of 448 bps per Galileo satellite connected to an uplink station. The data retrieved by the user from the different satellites offering the HAS will be reconstructed, allowing the user to achieve an improved positioning performance.

As the project’s leader, GMV will be responsible for core project activities such as the provision of the algorithms for the computation of the high-accuracy corrections, which rely on GMV’s MagicPPP software suite for precise point positioning. GMV is supported by SIDERTIA in the area of cybersecurity.

The specification , design and development phases have already been completed, and the project is progressing toward qualification of the system that will enable the execution of the necessary validation activities prior to the HAS initial service declaration, which is expected in 2022.

GMV presented the first version of MagicGNSS in 2008.

June 10, 2021
Thales Alenia Space to assess feasibility of EGNSS integrity service

Image: loveguli/E+/Getty Images

Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), has been selected by the European Commission for a new strategic contract to assess the feasibility of an integrity service to complement the European Global Navigation Satellite System (EGNSS) High Accuracy service, which will pave the way for use in autonomous vehicles.

Thales Alenia Space will focus on the development of a sensor-fusion approach, including and complementing evolutions of EGNSS High Accuracy. These service evolutions are aimed at providing the integrity level to serve the high-reliability and high-accuracy positioning needs of new, demanding applications such as autonomous vehicles on the road and autonomous transport in the maritime and rail sectors.

With this contract, Thales Alenia Space will assess the extension of the integrity and safety-of-life services for aviation into the road, rail and maritime sectors. In 2020, the company won the EPICURE project, based on an integrity concept for road travel (tolls and insurance), as well as the IMPRESS project, targeting an integrity service for rail signaling and train separation.

Thales Alenia Space has been a prime contractor for EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) for 25 years. It is a lead industrial contributor to the Galileo system and its ground mission segment and responsible for providing six Galileo Second Generation satellites. In April, the company was awarded a contract to support the implementation and experimentation of the navigation algorithms that will be used in the Galileo Second Generation program.

June 1, 2021
Orolia selected to deliver next-gen Galileo GNSS simulator

The European Commission and the European Space Agency (ESA) have selected Orolia to provide the core GNSS simulation engine for the Galileo Second Generation (G2G) RF Constellation Simulator (G2G RFCS).

While the first launched Galileo satellites are reaching the end of their theoretical operational life, the G2G initiative includes the preparation of a future generation of Galileo global infrastructure, from satellites to ground segments, to maintain current services as well as provide improved performance and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) features to all users.

In this context, Orolia has been selected to participate in the G2G RFCS activity, which will support G2G signals evolution requirements.

The primary objective of the G2G RFCS initiative is to design, develop, manufacture and test an enhanced radio-frequency constellation simulator dedicated to Galileo engineering and experiments. This simulation technology will enable scientists and industries to verify, demonstrate and validate the future G2G configuration.

To meet these requirements, Orolia will provide the core GNSS simulation engine based on its Skydel software technology, within a custom hardware configuration, to simulate all Galileo signals including Open Service (OS) and Public Regulated Service (PRS). Orolia’s GNSS simulators offer the high-end performance level and flexibility required to configure this new testing infrastructure in a software-defined solution.

“With this project, Orolia demonstrates the Skydel platform’s exceptional flexibility to meet critical application requirements and serve as the core engine to design the next generation of GNSS signals,” said Orolia CEO Jean-Yves Courtois. “We are very proud to work with ESA, GMV and Tecnobit to help develop the next generation European Galileo constellation.”

Image: ESA

May 17, 2021
GMV supplies a Galileo second-generation RF constellation simulator

Image: ESA

The European Space Agency has selected GMV to supply the radio-frequency constellation simulator (RFCS) for the Galileo second generation (G2G) program.

According to GMV, this is the multinational’s largest contract in Portugal.

From Portugal, GMV will lead a consortium to supply an RFCS covering both the first and second Galileo generations. The Galileo first generation (G1G), running since December 2016, consists of space infrastructure (26 satellites to date) and ground infrastructure.

Under the G2G RFCS contract, GMV teams in Portugal and Spain — partnering with Orolia and Tecobit — will develop an RFCS covering both Galileo generations as well as Galileo Open Service and Public Regulated Service (PRS). The RFCS will simulate the progressive deployment of the G2G with its new signals and will be key to supporting development of G2G infrastructure and testing of experimental user receivers.

The G2G aims to phase in new services, improve existing services, and boost system robustness. It also will enhance security while cutting operating and maintenance costs.

The RFCS will cover user characteristics such as dynamic behavior, signal impairments such as multipath and interference but also solution hybridization (for example, inertial sensors) and signal distortions. It will be designed to guarantee flexibility, configurability, modularity and scalability, as well as segregation of need-to-know information. For this purpose, the RFCS will be built with consumer-off-the-shelf products and follow a software-defined radio approach.

The project is closely linked with other PRS activities within GMV, identified as strategic for the maintenance of GMV’s European leadership position in the Galileo program.

May 5, 2021
Galileo Center for Mexico, Central America and Caribbean opens in Mexico City

A new Galileo Information Center for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean has opened in Mexico City, with training facilities in Querétaro, Mexico. The 177-million population is a largely untapped market for space, according to Telespazio Ibérica.

Telespazio Ibérica will run the center as leader of a consortium composed of European and local industrial and institutional partners such as everis, Enaire, Geotecnologías, and universities including the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.

The center is co-financed by the Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS) of the European Commission for 36 months. Its goal is to enlarge the ecosystem of Galileo Information Centers as it joins two existing centers in Chile and Brazil, active since November 2019. The centers contribute to the European Commission’s outreach to promote the EU Space Programme and foster its market uptake in Latin America.

The new center will help improve visibility of European satellite navigation and promote cooperation on Galileo and EGNOS between the EU space ecosystem and regional stakeholders. This includes building valuable insights on local GNSS markets, monitoring local and regional satellite navigation initiatives, and seeking to understand regional needs and the market potential for European GNSS. The center will provide communication, promotion and training activities.

“Telespazio Ibérica already plays a key role in the Galileo Service Center in Madrid,” said Miguel Bermudo, CEO of Telespazio Ibérica. In Madrid, the company operates on behalf of Spaceopal, a joint venture between Telespazio and the German Space Agency DLR, under the GSA contract for the Galileo Service Operator.

“We have chosen to co-finance this project with DG DEFIS to promote Galileo in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean,” Bermudo said, “considering its presence in this important region to be of a great strategic value both in promoting the use and applications offered by Galileo and the opportunity it represents for Telespazio Group.”

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March 30, 2021