In recent years, hostile actors have jammed or spoofed PNT services, demonstrating potential threats to key services. PNT can also be affected by natural events like solar flares from the sun.
The £155 million funding was announced Wednesday by Science Minister Lord Vallance at the Royal Institute of Navigation’s annual PNT Leadership Seminar, which brings together researchers, innovators and business leaders from across the sector.
The investment includes initial work to provide PNT that is independent of signals from satellites, making it harder to jam or spoof; PNT resilience at the National Physical Laboratory; and a new system to proactively monitor for threats to the UK’s PNT services.
The £155 million funding consists of:
£71 million to begin work on a UK National Enhanced Long-Range Navigation (eLoran) program, providing PNT across land, air and sea independent of signals from satellites, and hard to jam or spoof.
£68 million for further development of the National Timing Centre (NTC) program. The NTC is being delivered by the National Physical Laboratory to develop the UK’s first nationally distributed time infrastructure. As well as boosting resilience, it could help with innovative new uses of technologies like 5G, satellite communications, and self-driving vehicles.
£13 million for work on a UK GNSS interference monitoring program, to deliver a world-leading capability for the UK to monitor and react to threats to PNT signals, like jamming and spoofing.
£3 million for the Space-Based Time Transfer R&D program. This will develop the technology required to deliver global timing systems independent of GPS and other GNSS.
“Having resilient and enduring access to Position, Navigation and Timing Services is a critical part of life in today’s world, and a major plank in the UK’s national security,” Vallance said. “So many of the things we take for granted every day, from using our phones to planning a journey, simply couldn’t happen without it. The UK is a leader in this field, but in an uncertain world we cannot be complacent. The funding we are announcing today will ultimately help protect Britain from the risks posed to PNT, from both accidental outages and hostile acts, safeguarding everyone’s wealth and wellbeing.”
“Strengthening the UK’s PNT capabilities will give direction to our growing PNT industry, supporting the wider economy and national renewal, whilst cementing the UK’s position as a global PNT leader,” Vallance said.
Today’s news comes after a substantial year of progress for UK PNT. The government agreed to closer work with both the US and France around PNT resilience, as part of September’s UK-US Technology Prosperity Deal and July’s UK-France Summit.
DSIT published a Call for Evidence on PNT growth in June, seeking views on the PNT market and R&D landscape in the UK, as well as the barriers to market entry, commercialisation, and user adoption. We will publish a summary of our findings later this year.
Saying the government must focus on “delivering an operational resilient positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) system for the United Kingdom as soon as we can,” the British Science Minister, Lord Patrick Vallance, announced several initiatives in his opening remarks to the Royal Institute of Navigation’s UK PNT Leadership Seminar on Nov. 20, 2024.
Among them was a funding increase for the National Physical Laboratory’s National Time Centre (NTC) project from £30 million ($38 million) to £62.7 million ($79 million) and a plan to have NTC and the first of the nation’s new eLoran towers at initial operating capability (IOC) by January of 2027.
Plans for all efforts beyond next year were necessarily “subject to spending review.”
Still, seminar attendees were gratified to hear the minister’s endorsement of the 10-point PNT policy framework published by the previous administration in 2023 and his commitment to operationalizing it with implemented systems.
Shabana Haque, Ph.D., head of the United Kingdom’s National PNT Office, also addressed the seminar and elaborated on the government’s actions to date and plans moving forward. She also discussed efforts toward developing quantum technologies and how all the capabilities would be incorporated into a coherent architecture.
Photo: RNT Foundation
Clocks
The United Kingdom recognizes time and timing as the most fundamental component of the PNT utility. Its NTC R&D program, run by the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), has been up and running since 2019. Its primary objective is to create “…a resilient UK national time infrastructure through the building and linking of a new atomic clock network distributed geographically in secure locations.”
Five years later, that program is coming to an end. Plans are in the works for the next phase of the NTC program, which includes developing a national timing infrastructure and supporting a new timing ecosystem — one that includes two-way satellite-time transfer (TWSTT), eLoran and the country’s legacy MSF radio time service. The industry will have a valuable role in the architecture of time distribution and providing value-added services while accessing highly resilient and well-authenticated core government time infrastructure.
As a result of NTC work to date, traceable time and frequency signals can now be accessed by industry and academia from three NPL nodes dispersed across the United Kingdom. They are at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland, the University of Cranfield in the Midlands and the University of Surrey in the south.
eLoran
eLoran also features prominently in the United Kingdom’s PNT plans. Britain operated Loran-C as part of the Northern European network until the end of 2015. For the last year of that, differential stations were deployed along the United Kingdom’s eastern coast and maritime operations based on eLoran were authorized.
On Jan. 1, 2015, and despite British pleas to the contrary, other northern European nations terminated Loran broadcasts in favor of Galileo. The United Kingdom has continued to operate its single eLoran transmitter as a national time signal. Plans call for additional transmitters to enable eLoran navigation across the nation and its adjacent waters within the next two years.
UrsaNav Loran monitor on Nautel equipment. (Photo: RNT Foundation)
The UK government has been working with several partners to advance its understanding and plan for the implementation of an eLoran capability. Haque highlighted work with the European Space Agency’s NAVISP program, resulting in the British company Roke developing an eLoran antenna for handheld devices.
She also discussed integrating the NTC’s clock and fiber network with eLoran signals and developing GNSS/eLoran receivers.
Many were particularly interested in an “eLoran Effectiveness Report” that the government commissioned and received from the General Lighthouse Authority’s Research and Development (GRAD) team. GRAD has extensive experience with the technology, having operated and evaluated the differential eLoran system along Great Britain’s east coast.
In a related move that helped signal the United Kingdom’s commitment to the technology, the Ministry of Defence issued a Request for Information (RFI) in September 2024 about a deployable eLoran capability. The RFI indicated that the document was a prelude to an acquisition.
Quantum research
The United Kingdom has invested more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) into quantum research, which has the potential to contribute to PNT with better timekeeping and inertial and gravimetric sensing.
One aim of the quantum research program is to develop “…new navigation and timing systems to provide resilience and improved accuracy in the event of the denial of satellite systems.” A specific goal is to deploy quantum navigation systems, including clocks, on aircraft by 2030.
The program began in 2014 and has seen a significant increase in 2024 with the establishment of five quantum hubs nationwide. The hub at the University of Glasgow focuses on resilient PNT systems for national security and critical national infrastructure.
Policy and coordination
Minister Vallance and Haque also discussed two important non-technology themes.
The first was that the United Kingdom’s PNT office is fully funded, staffed, and very active. It was created last year as a cross-government effort and includes representation from the Ministry of Defence. In addition to pushing the nation’s PNT efforts forward, the office has been engaged with numerous other governments, including those of the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Japan and Korea.
USCG Loran tower circa 1995. (Photo: RNT Foundation)
Second, while the PNT initiatives are necessary for the nation’s resilience and security they will also be a source of economic benefits. This goes beyond enabling the British economy to function during local and potentially widespread GNSS disruption events. As the nation develops the technology stack to support its own resilient PNT architecture, along with enabling and supporting policies, resilient PNT devices and services will become marketable to others.
A sovereign PNT capability that can both stand on its own and cooperate with GNSS is becoming increasingly attractive to many nations. Being able to source such a capability from a respected and trusted ally such as Great Britain could make acquiring and implementing such a system much easier for many.
The UK Science Minister also praised the RIN’s work and publication of a series of tools to help explain PNT and the need for resilience to those outside the community. The tools also will help organizations evaluate their readiness for GNSS disruptions.
Available from the RIN’s Resilient PNT Portal, they are
A PNT explainer that outlines risks from over-dependence on GNSS and provides links to other informative resources.
A best practices “placemat” describing a “Prepare, Act, Recover” framework for PNT disruptions.
A PNT resilience checklist for organizations to use to self-evaluate their risk from GNSS disruptions.
The RIN recommends PNT experts use these tools working with customers, suppliers, and partners and act as a “guiding hand.”
The RIN sees these all as a “phase 1 release.” Feedback on the tools is encouraged and should be sent to [email protected]. The RIN team is eager to know what works and what could be improved, as well as to receive suggestions for other efforts.
As a “learned society,” the RIN has a significant influence on government policy and direction. This was recognized by Lord Vallance, saying, “The Royal Institute has played a really important role in recent years to highlight the PNT opportunity and risk, to provide expertise, and to work with government on solutions.”
The RIN’s director, John Pottle, and RIN Fellows Ramsey Faragher, Guy Buesnel and Andy Proctor were all recognized during the seminar for their contributions to the organization’s resilient PNT efforts.
UK leading the west
While China is in the final stages of establishing a nationwide clock system integrated with eLoran and signals from space, and South Korea is following suit, the United Kingdom seems to be the only Western nation in the process of establishing a coherent and resilient national PNT systems-of-systems architecture.
Some nations have substantial fiber timing networks, Europe seems to be on the path to a timing backbone, and the United States has three eLoran transmitters on air. However, none have announced the type of integrated plans the UK has published.
When asked about this, one UK PNT technology and policy expert opined that his nation is so far ahead of Europe and the United States because “we are unencumbered by having our own GNSS.”
His idea is that GNSS involves a lot of time, effort and money. The kind of financial and emotional commitments needed for these huge projects makes it hard for many to come to grips with the limitations and vulnerabilities of GNSS and the need to implement complementary systems. Both government officials and GNSS industry lobbyists may tend to resist such efforts, he said.
Concerning the UK government’s investment in OneNav, he said it is still possible that the United Kingdom might also pursue a space-based capability. Rather than establishing the capability on its own, in his opinion, the government will be much more likely to look for a commercial subscription service.
“We will access GNSS when we can trust it, and may pay for other signals from space,” he said. “But we want a sovereign capability for the United Kingdom, and the future of resilient PNT is terrestrial.”
The United Kingdom’s spectrum agency, Ofcom, is seeking comments on its proposal to issue licenses for broadcasting eLoran signals and services. This initiative comes, it says, after the agency was “…approached with a request to authorize use of the 90-110 kHz spectrum for the provision of a long-range navigation system, based on eLoran technology.” Issuing licenses could be a way to treat all interested parties fairly.
After briefly describing the importance of positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services to modern life, the Ofcom request for comment observes: “Satellite-based PNT systems like the Global Positioning System (GPS) can be susceptible to interference and can be vulnerable to space weather events. The eLoran technology provides a terrestrial-based alternative … which could in [the] future act as a supplementary or back-up system to GPS. [I]t has the potential to support innovation in the delivery of resilient PNT.”
This rationale is quite similar to that cited by other governments operating Loran-like systems around the world.
Until now, with a few minor exceptions, only government entities and those working on their behalf have been authorized to use the frequency. Such licenses would authorize holders to broadcast eLoran in the 90 kHz to 110 kHz band, which is the portion of spectrum reserved internationally for radio navigation.
From October 2014 to December 2015, the UK had an operational eLoran network serving the waters off its east coast and authorized for maritime use. That system was discontinued when France and Norway bowed to pressure from supporters of Europe’s Galileo system, which was still in development. The UK Ministry of Defence still broadcasts a single eLoran signal from Anthorn, UK, that can be used as a wireless timing source.
Several other nations currently broadcast some version of Loran in the 90 kHz to 110 kHz band. These include PNT systems operated by South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Russia and China. Reports indicate Iran is also broadcasting in the spectrum, though other details remain unclear.
Unconfirmed reports from amateur radio operators in the United States seem to indicate that testing of Loran-like signals in the 90 kHz to 11 0kHz band has been conducted in North America periodically over the last 10 years.
Until now, the UK has only formally authorized eLoran and the frequency for maritime use. Observers in the UK say this Ofcom initiative will almost certainly expand that to its use everywhere and for multiple applications, such as timing for critical infrastructure.
Ofcom says, “[d]eployment of eLoran in the UK could complement existing PNT services, particularly in locations where there is poor GPS coverage or weak signals, like tunnels or deep inside buildings. eLoran could also provide resilience (i.e., back-up) for satellite-based systems against interference, jamming and spoofing, thereby aiding protection of key national infrastructure…”
This Ofcom notice may be the first official move toward encouraging one or more entirely commercial eLoran services.
Commercial wide-area PNT services capable of protecting critical infrastructure and national economies have long faced an uphill battle, though.
Several industry leaders have commented that “it’s impossible to compete with free GNSS!”
The same leaders have also criticized the U.S. government for not “walking the talk” when it comes to resilient PNT. At a U.S. Department of Transportation meeting last year they urged the government to not just tell others, but to set an example and protect itself with resilient PNT services. Doing so, they said, would show industry and users the government is serious and instill confidence that commercial services were reliable and would be sustained.
Yet, experts cite a “chicken and egg” problem.
“The government can’t subscribe to services that don’t exist, and companies can’t stand up and provide nation-wide services without having an anchor-customer first,” according to an industry insider.
To solve this dilemma, public-private-partnerships have been proposed over the years in both the UK and the United States. To date, a willing “public” or government partner has yet to be identified for either nation.
This might be changing in the UK government with growing awareness about the limitations of and threats to GNSS and other space systems. While a national strategy for PNT has been promised for years and is yet to be published, a cross-government PNT office has recently been established.
“The UK is in a great position to lead the world on resilient PNT,” said one observer at a recent Royal Institute of Navigation event. “The key is working with GPS and other GNSS, while at the same time ensuring your nation has its own sovereign system independent of space. We (in the UK) have deep expertise and experience at the GLA (General Lighthouse Authority) with eLoran, and we have a superb tech economy. Britain could be the world’s leading producer of a resilient PNT tech stack that includes eLoran transmitters, receivers that use GNSS, eLoran, and other signals or phenomena, and all the supporting gear and IP (intellectual property) to make it all work.”
“Realizing that vision will take a bit more government leadership than just issuing a few broadcast licenses, though,” they said.
The General Lighthouse Authorities (GLA) of the United Kingdom and Ireland has named Alan Grant to the top post of its research and development team. Grant assumed his new role on Nov. 1.
As part of his duties, he heads the GLA’s research and development program, considering existing and future maritime requirements and operational strategy. GLA Research and Development (GRAD) is tasked with improving maritime safety by developing innovative and cost-effective maritime aids-to-navigation (AtoN).
GRAD projects have included all aspects of AtoN including human and machine interaction, operational life and environment. The team has deep technical expertise and experience with automatic identification systems (AIS) , the VHF Data Exchange System (VDES) , eLoran, e‑navigation, GNSS, SBAS and visual signaling.
The organization is well known for its expertise in electronic navigation aids and was an important contributor to the MarRINav project. The project effort was funded by the European Space Agency and examined what combination of electronic aids to navigation are needed to ensure uninterrupted UK shipping.
Grant joined the GLA in 2003 and has worked on a variety of systems during his time with GRAD. He led a series of successful GPS jamming trials and the development of the multi-system radionavigation receiver performance standards, from initial concept to international recognition at the IMO. He continues to support resilient positioning, navigation and timing in maritime navigation at both technical and strategic levels.
Grant is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation, where he is a member of the council and served as vice president, 2019-2021. He is also a member of the U.S. Institute of Navigation and served on the ION Council, 2013-2017.
Grant chairs the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA) radionavigation services working group and is a member of several international standards bodies. He is a chartered engineer, a chartered physicist, and author of more than 120 journal papers, magazine articles, and conference papers.
Martin Bransby, the prior GRAD leader, has taken a position with Telespazio in the UK.
Longstone Lighthouse is situated on the Outer Farne Islands on the Northumberland Coast in Northern England. (Photo: ad_foto/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images)
The United Kingdom’s National Timing Centre will conduct a two-phase series of funded studies and demonstrations focusing on “innovation in the dissemination and application of resilient time, frequency and synchronisation.”
The first round now being advertised is for feasibility studies of projects costing between £50,000 and £250,000. Total funding for the round is £2M. A briefing for interested parties will be held on April 20.
The second round and remaining funding will be devoted to technology demonstrations.
The UK’s National Timing Centre was established in response to several national studies and concerns about the vulnerability of space-based timing services.
Severe solar storms, called coronal mass ejections, were listed on the UK National Risk Register in 2012. While rare, these events can damage assets in space and on the ground.
Next month marks the 100th anniversary of the New York Railroad Storm. It was so powerful, telegraph offices were set on fire in the U.S. and Europe, fuses were blown, and equipment damaged. Even underwater telegraph cable traffic was affected.
Experts say if such a storm were to strike the Earth today, it would likely damage GPS and other GNSS satellites. At a minimum, it would charge the atmosphere and prevent signals from getting through for days.
Projects that will be considered for the UK competition must be technologies and application areas providing trust, assurance, security and resilience for time distribution.
While supported by Innovate UK, the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), which operates the virtual National Timing Centre, appears to be the primary agent for execution. NPL will offer applicants who are selected to participate in the feasibility study phase free technical consultation up to 12 hours, and free access to highly precise and accurate time signals from four NPL locations in the southeast of England.
Since its inception, the National Timing Centre seems to have concentrated on establishing distributed suites of atomic clocks, probably linked by fiber, as a first step to improving the nation’s timing resilience.
Industry observers have opined that future efforts are likely to focus on wireless distribution.
“Wireless requires less infrastructure and has no user limit,” said one. “It only makes sense they would go there once they feel they have a solid clock foundation.”
The competition is open to UK entities. Applications will be accepted April 19-June 9, with accepted participants notified on July 30.
CityMapper is a hybrid airborne sensor combining vertical and oblique imagery with 3D laser scanning designed for 3D city modeling and urban mapping.
Using the CityMapper, Bluesky was able to capture parts of London, Manchester and Birmingham as well as Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Norwich, Nottingham and Oxford. Bluesky intends to increase its coverage by capturing additional towns and cities across the U.K. and Ireland in 2019.
St. Paul’s Cathedral in London captured in lidar point-cloud data. (Image: Bluesky)
According to Bluesky, this is the first time the technology has been used commercially in the UK to this level. The captured city data is available from Bluesky and Leica Geosystems, part of Hexagon, in its constituent components of vertical orthorectified aerial imagery, oblique photographs and lidar point cloud data. Plans are in place to also include the imagery in the HxGN Content Program.
The combination of multiple survey-grade cameras and lidar enables the simultaneous capture of data for the automatic creation of highly accurate and detailed citywide 3D models, with one sensor, according to Bluesky.
Previous 3D models have either been prohibitively expensive for use across larger areas or of insufficient detail or accuracy. The CityMapper sensor enabled efficient, cost-effective capture of highly detailed and accurate data, and could make possible widespread use of 3D models possible.
The CityMapper sensor is designed for 3D city modeling and urban mapping. (Photo: Leica Geosystems)
CityMapper includes a traditional vertical camera as well as survey-grade oblique cameras. The sensor also includes high-performance lidar technology to accurately collect elevation data even into the shadows, which are common in urban environments and make photo-based data collection difficult.
The CityMapper sensor also collects color infrared data, which can be used to aid greenspace mapping and vegetation studies.
Applications of the new Bluesky 3D models are expected to include urban planning, line-of-sight analysis, new development visualizations and environmental modeling, as well as potentially 3D fly throughs and virtual reality experiences. Early adopters of the data include architects, planning consultants and other map publishers.
An electronic pelorus is poised to become a useful tool in any mariner’s toolbox of resilient PNT systems. Learn how it works, and the benefits it brings to position fixing at sea.
INNOVATION INSIGHTS by Richard Langley
POP QUIZ: What do a character from Greek mythology, a point on the coast of Sicily, the pilot of Hannibal’s ship, a fizzy wine from New Zealand, and a navigation instrument have in common?
They are all called Pelorus or pelorus in the case of the instrument as it’s not a proper noun (grammar lesson over). And while a discussion of each of the uses of the word could be quite educational, this month’s column, perhaps predictably, will be about the pelorus or rather a modernized version of it.
If you are a landlubber, like me, you may not have heard of the pelorus. Yet, in one form or another it has been around for hundreds of years although not always going by that name. In appearance and use, it resembles a compass with sighting vanes.
But it has no magnetic components of any sort. And while a compass is used to get a magnetic bearing of a charted feature such as a tower or lighthouse or the magnetic heading of a vessel, a pelorus is used to measure a relative bearing between a feature and a reference direction such as the heading of the vessel, commonly called the ship’s head.
If a line is drawn on a chart through the sighted feature at an angle equal to the measured bearing, the vessel must be somewhere along this so-called line of position. If a second bearing on another feature significantly displaced from the first is measured in quick succession, a second line of position can be drawn on the chart, crossing the first.
The intersection point gives the (two-dimensional or horizontal) location, or position fix, of the vessel. Since the measured bearings will have some error, generally at least three lines of position are established with their intersections forming a small triangle, sometimes called a “cocked hat.” The location of the vessel is either inside the triangle or nearby depending on the similarity of the bearing errors.
Position fixes can also be obtained from instruments that measure ranges. In this case, the lines of position are circles for terrestrial systems providing two-dimensional fixes or spheres of position in the case of three-dimensional fixes obtained from GNSS measurements.
But let’s get back to the pelorus. Most vessels of a certain size are equipped with a pelorus. Frequent use of the pelorus helps to maintain situational awareness and being a completely passive device, it is not dependent on receiving an electronic signal of any kind. Only an acceptable level of visibility is required. And it can provide a manual check on any automated ship’s systems such as a GNSS receiver.
However, determining position fixes using a pelorus and a paper chart is laborious and time consuming and it is cumbersome to manually add lines of position to an electronic chart. What is needed is an electronic pelorus, which measures bearings electronically and automatically generates a line of position on an electronic chart.
The General Lighthouse Authorities of the United Kingdom and Ireland, the agencies responsible for aids to navigation in the U.K. and Ireland, have developed such an instrument. Dubbed the BinoNav, it is poised to become a useful tool in any mariner’s toolbox of resilient PNT systems and in this month’s column, we learn about its genesis, how it works, and the benefits it brings to position fixing at sea.
The overreliance on GNSS is well known and widely publicized. While GNSS is generally available, concerns remain on how maritime operations, and safe navigation in particular, are affected should GNSS not be usable, or become denied for any reason.
The General Lighthouse Authorities of the United Kingdom and Ireland (GLA) have been working on resilient positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) for many years. This work has included a comprehensive review of different potential solutions and their availability. One option proposed is the development of a ship-based positioning system that makes use of a modernized pelorus to work with a modern bridge.
Pelorus systems work by providing bearings from fixed positions, normally on the vessel bridge wings, to specific targets visible to the mariner and identified on the navigation chart. By taking several bearings in quick succession, intersecting lines can be drawn on the navigation chart, providing a position estimation. Clearly, there are limitations to this approach — these are explored within this article, but can be summarized as:
Automation. The time taken to measure the bearings can limit the achieved accuracy.
Visibility. Performance is limited by the mariner’s ability to see unique targets.
Paperless bridges. Many vessel bridges are moving away from paper, limiting the mariner’s ability to take bearings and plot them.
e-Navigation. More bridge systems require electronic values of latitude and longitude.
In an attempt to resolve most of these limitations, the GLA has been working on the development of an enhanced pelorus, or ePelorus, with its name registered to the Research and Radionavigation Directorate (R&RNAV) as BinoNav.
Prototype BinoNav systems have been developed and installed on all GLA vessels for trial. They enable the navigator to take visual bearings to known targets, from anywhere on the bridge using a handheld device — they are no longer confined to the bridge wings and targeting port or starboard objects.
Measured bearings are automatically registered and drawn on an electronic chart. Multiple bearings can then be made with ease, each of which is displayed on the chart and the intersecting “cocked-hat” position (to be discussed later), calculated automatically. This information can then be used to feed other bridge systems and confirm the vessel’s position.
In this article, I will provide a comprehensive overview of the BinoNav system, provide the results of initial trials and explain the planned development of the proposed resilient PNT solution.
e-NAVIGATION
Much has been written about e-Navigation elsewhere, but briefly, it is the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO’s) concept for the future of navigation, instigated by the U.K. Department for Transport in 2004. It will lead to the integration of systems and data — for the exchange of relevant geolocated information — faster and more cost effectively, and it will do this in the context of larger, faster vessels operating in ever more constricting shipping lanes and increasing offshore obstacles such as renewable energy infrastructure as well as the legacy of non-renewable energy infrastructure.
e-Navigation is designed to enhance safety of life for the mariner, improve protection of the environment, and increase energy efficiency in terms of shorter routing for fuel-efficient shipping. Moreover, it will allow more effective use of resources and integration across transport modes, including the more effective provision of integrated port operations.
Since its inception in 2004, development and delivery of e-Navigation services has been slow. Even now, some 14 years later, only a few prototype projects have delivered anything like what was anticipated in the original e-Navigation vision. This sluggishness has been caused by minimal leadership and drive from the IMO.
Despite this, some initiatives have been successfully delivered on a local or regional basis. These initiatives have come largely through projects such as Accessibility for Shipping, Efficiency Advantages and Sustainability (ACCSEAS), Efficient Safe and Sustainable Traffic at Sea (EfficienSea) 1 & 2, Motorways and Electronic Navigation by Intelligence at Sea (MonaLisa) 1 & 2, and Sea Traffic Management (a MonaLisa project), all of which have been supported by funding from the European Union.
Resiliency in PNT has been identified by the IMO as a lead area in the delivery of e-Navigation, and all these projects have used resilient PNT as the basis of what they have delivered.
REQUIREMENT FOR RESILIENT PNT
FIGURE 1. Ships’ systems affected by GPS jamming. (Data: Author)
It is now well recognized that all GNSS are vulnerable to interference, whether these interferers are from natural causes such as space weather or from synthetic sources such as jamming or spoofing devices. GNSS receiving units and satellite failures also occur. There are many examples of each of these problems affecting GNSS worldwide.
Resilient PNT information is needed to ensure continuity of maritime operations and safe navigation — especially for e-Navigation, management of sea traffic, and autonomous vessels.
GPS jamming trials were conducted by GLA’s R&RNAV in 1994, 2008, 2009 and 2012. These trials showed the real-time vulnerability of maritime systems to jamming. They identified that many ships’ systems were affected by GPS jamming. However, some systems we did not expect to be affected actually were (see Figure 1). Devices such as the helicopter-deck stabilization system and the ship’s gyrocompass are good examples.
GLA Work on Resilient PNT. GLA, through R&RNAV, has conducted a program of work that has looked at the issues of GNSS vulnerability and what they can do about it through a series of studies. These have looked at a number of systems such as
enhanced Loran, absolute radar positioning (two different methods)
ranging mode or R-mode, which is the use of ranging signals from existing marine infrastructure (two different methods)
signals of opportunity (many methods)
hybrid systems
dead reckoning
inertial
other on-board systems.
The timeline for the introduction of some of these systems into operational use, as well as current and new GNSS, can be seen in Figure 2. This article deals with equipment that falls into the “other on-board systems” category.
FIGURE 2. Timeline for resilient PNT (GNSS and complementary systems). (Diagram: Author)
A DRIVER FOR OPTICAL NAVIGATION SYSTEMS
The need for new optical navigation systems has been driven by a number of marine incidents, one of which I will discuss in detail.
MV Tricolor Incident. On Dec. 14, 2002, in early morning thick fog, on its way from Zeebrugge to Southampton, the MV Tricolor, with a load of almost 3,000 BMW, Volvo and Saab cars, collided with a Bahamian-flagged container ship named Kariba, about 20 miles north of the French coast in the Dover Strait Traffic Separation Scheme.
Albeit damaged above the water line, the Kariba could continue, while the MV Tricolor remained wedged on her side in 30 meters of water in a busy area of navigation. No lives were lost and the crew were rescued by the Kariba and a tugboat. Nevertheless, approximately 2,862 cars and 77 units of cargo, consisting mainly of tractors and crane parts, could not be salvaged.
The shipping lane, being the busiest in the world, was marked by buoys and guarded by the French police vessel Glaive and HMS Anglesey, thereby warning other vessels of the MV Tricolor’s presence. Despite the marking and patrolling, only two days later a cargo ship, Nicola, followed by another vessel, Vicky (carrying 70,000 tonnes of highly flammable gas oil) collided with the wreck of the Tricolor, after failing to heed several French naval warnings. In between the two further collisions, more buoyage and patrol vessels were deployed. On Jan. 22, a third accident happened when a salvage tug knocked a safety valve off the Tricolor, resulting in a massive oil spill.
Besides the heavy economic losses, including the estimated operation cost of around £25M (roughly $40M), the incident caused massive marine pollution and environmental contamination by spilling large quantities of oil. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds estimated more than 1,000 birds were found dead or damaged by oil spilled from Tricolor.
Why Did It Happen? The incident was blamed on declining professional standards among seafarers, which was leading to scores of near misses in the area every day. Indeed, Andrew Linnington of the National Union of Marine Aviation and Shipping Transport Officers is quoted as saying that ship owners had been cutting costs by reducing use of deep-sea pilots to guide vessels through the world’s most crowded shipping lanes. Ships were increasingly crewed by one trained officer and a few poorly paid sailors from parts of the developing world.
“We know of at least four cases in the past year of ships going the wrong way in shipping lanes against the flow of traffic,” Linnington said. “Complaints are made to the states where the ships are registered, but they are often small countries used as flags of convenience and don’t have the resources to take action.”
It is clear from the incident and the ensuing investigation that navigators were not looking out the window, despite various radio navigation warnings and other methods, not the least of which was deploying wreck-marking buoys and virtual aids to navigation.
A very good way of mitigating the failure of any navigation system is by using reversionary methods of navigation, like looking out the window! This was a big driver in the GLA development of the BinoNav.
WHAT IS BINONAV?
FIGURE 3. A pelorus. (Photo: Author)
BinoNav is an electronic pelorus. A pelorus is a device that is completely independent of any other system or electronic position fixing system (EPFS), and this is important for providing resiliency.
Pelorus. A standard pelorus (see Figure 3) is used to take relative (to the vessel’s head) bearings to charted objects in the vicinity. The navigator then draws a line on the relevant navigation chart through the charted object. It is clear now that the vessel lies somewhere on this “line of position” from the charted object. This process is then repeated several times using different charted objects, with a minimum of three iterations.
This process then creates a “cocked hat” (a triangle in the case of three lines of position) generated from the intersection of the lines. Accounting for systematic errors, the vessel should lie somewhere within this cocked hat (see Figure 4 for an example).
This process is laborious and time consuming, but it does have the advantage of getting the navigator to look at real features outside the vessel — not just a red line on an electronic chart that they follow without question.
FIGURE 4. An example of positioning using a pelorus. (Chart: Author)
What about Electronic Chart Display? Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDISs) are excellent, when used correctly, and have driven innovation in the shipping industry. However, they do have disadvantages: If you are using a pelorus, you cannot very easily draw on a screen. You can generate an electronic bearing line (EBL) on an ECDIS, but it is a very long, convoluted way of providing a position not derived from an EPFS, such as a GNSS fix.
Any system that needs to generate an EBL on an ECDIS needs to do it electronically. Moreover, it needs to do this without having to rely on GNSS for position or time to avoid the issues of GNSS vulnerability: it should be completely independent. It should also be able to carry out optical to electronic integration to ensure that the mariner is looking out the window. Another GLA requirement was that it should be relatively low cost to make and distribute to enable take up across all users. So the idea of BinoNav was born. BinoNav fulfills all these criteria easily, intuitively and quickly, updating the electronic position of the vessel. Furthermore, with its wireless connection, bearings can be taken anywhere on the bridge of a vessel.
BINONAV FEATURES
In this section, I will describe the BinoNav and how it is used.
FIGURE 5. The BinoNav configuration. (Photo: Author)
Easy to Use. BinoNav comprises two parts: the “Bino” unit, which is a modified pair of binoculars, and a “base” unit that performs the communication link between the Bino unit and the electronic chart. Pick up the Bino unit from the base unit (see Figure 5 for overall configuration of the BinoNav).
Line up the graticule inside the Bino unit with a charted feature of use, press either of the buttons to automatically generate a line on the displayed electronic chart, which is relative to the ship’s head. As with a standard pelorus, one needs at least another two of these EBLs to generate a cocked-hat position on the electronic chart. Using either the touch screen or the mouse, “hover” over the cocked hat to generate a triangle. Now, right click to drop a marker at the center of the cocked-hat position and delete all lines. Once the vessel has moved (and dictated by the operating environment at the time), this process can be repeated. When two or more of the markers have been dropped, a line is drawn between the marks, thereby showing a track on the chart.
Features. From the use of the BinoNav unit as described above, a track is produced on an electronic chart that is not derived from an EPFS. This is important as it shows the integration of visual navigation into e-Navigation, something which e-Navigation has tried to do from the very beginning, as described by Brian Wadsworth in his earliest vision of e-Navigation (see Further Reading).
Another feature of BinoNav is “radar mode” for charted feature recognition. This feature draws a continuously moving line on the display that points at the position relative to the ship’s head. This is useful for the recognition of charted features when in unfamiliar territory.
The BinoNav is very easy to install, with only a connection for power and a connection for a suitable National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) protocol data feed for heading. Many of its electronic components are available off the shelf and are widely available commercially with bespoke printed circuit boards. Some modification to the binocular unit has been necessary, with the addition of a bespoke unit, which links to the base unit for both orientation measurement and power when the unit is docked. The binoculars are readily available for around $500. The gyros incorporated in both the base unit and the binocular unit are high-grade microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices giving an angular resolution of 0.25-0.5 degrees, similar to that of a standard pelorus.
Currently, the BinoNav is 3D-printed, which allows for the quick production of one-off units. However, this approach is clearly not a suitable solution for long production runs and would require a different method of production.
FIGURE 6. The BinoNav installation on THV Alert. (Photo: Author)
Something for the Future. R&RNAV has received a lot of interest in the BinoNav not only from our own mariners, but also from a variety of influencers in the maritime world. We have had a great deal of positive feedback on potential improvements and additional features that we plan to develop.
We will also seek to gain approvals through IMO and the International Electrotechnical Commission to integrate BinoNav with ECDIS, so there will be no need for separate displays (unless being used on non-SOLAS vessels; that is, ones to which the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea does not apply.)
CURRENT GLA INSTALLATIONS
FIGURE 7. Using the BinoNav on ILV Granuaile. (Photo: Author)
The BinoNav has been installed on all six GLA vessels: ILV (Irish Lights Vessel) Granuaile, NVL (Northern Lighthouse Vessel) Pharos, NVL Pole Star, THV (Trinity House Vessel) Alert, THV Galatea and THV Patricia. The installation on Alert is shown in Figure 6 and BinoNav use on Granuaile is shown in Figure 7.
CONCLUSIONS
The key points made in this article can be summarized as follows:
e-Navigation is based on the premise of electronic navigation from “berth to berth.”
Many accidents happen because crews do not look out the window.
There is a need for electronic positioning from non-GNSS sources.
The BinoNav integrates visual navigation and electronic navigation through an ECDIS.
The BinoNav provides an independent verification of position with or without EPFS.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
BinoNav is a registered trade mark and carries unregistered design rights. BinoNav has patents pending.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author thanks the masters, officers and crews of all the GLA vessels for their help and for the benefit of their experience throughout the whole process of the BinoNav development. Special thanks go to those who helped during the various development trials on ILV Granuaile and THV Alert prior to the mainstream installations.
This article is based on the paper “BinoNav® – A New Positioning System for Maritime” presented at ION GNSS+ 2018, the 31st International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation, Miami, Florida, Sept. 24–28, 2018.
MARTIN BRANSBY is the head of the Research and Radionavigation Directorate at the General Lighthouse Authorities of the UK and Ireland, stationed in Harwich, Essex. He is responsible for the delivery of its program portfolio in research and development in technically diverse areas such as resilient PNT, e-Navigation, GNSS, Automatic Identification System (AIS) and visual signaling. He is a fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation, and holds memberships in the Institute of Engineering and Technology and The Institute of Navigation. He is also a member of the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities’ AtoN (Aid to Navigation) Requirements and Management Committee.
FURTHER READING
Author’s Conference Paper
“BinoNav® – A New Positioning System for Maritime” by M. Bransby in Proceedings of ION GNSS+ 2018, the 31st International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation, Miami, Florida, Sept. 24–28, 2018, pp. 1728–1735.
“Marine eNavigation: An Orientation Paper” by B. Wadsworth, document WEND9-INF4, presented to the 9th meeting of the International Hydrographic Organization World-wide Electronic Navigational Chart Database (WEND) Committee, Monaco, April 7–8, 2005.
“The Impact of GPS Jamming on the Safety of Navigation” by S. Basker, A. Grant, P. Williams and N. Ward, presented at the 48th meeting of the Civil GPS Service Interface Committee, Savannah, Georgia, Sept. 15–16, 2008.
GEO Business, the United Kingdom’s largest geospatial exhibition and conference, has announced that registration is now open.
The GEO Business show has grown every year since its inception, and the 2018 show looks set to be the most successful show to date with more exhibition space and a brand new seminar program. The event will return to the Business Design Centre, in London, UK, May 22-23.
Since its record-breaking 2017 event last year, which welcomed 2,386 geomatics and geospatial professionals from around the world (a 48 percent increase since the launch in 2014), the exhibition has expanded onto the upper level. Exhibitors span the entire geospatial industry, showcasing cutting-edge technology and solutions that will mold the future of the industry.
The 2018 GEO Business show will expand to the second level of the Business Design Center. (Photo: GEO Business)
Confirmed exhibitors for 2018 include Survey Solutions Scotland, Land Registry, GAP Group, Phase One, Viametris, Surphaser/ MD3D, DHF Satellite and Ordnance Survey Ireland.
New for 2018 is a free-to-attend seminar program designed to demonstrate the remarkable impact geospatial technologies and solutions on the global environment. The program will feature case studies from companies demonstrating how they are reducing costs and risk while increasing productivity.
The 2017 GEO Business exhibit. (Photo: GEO Business)
The latest in augmented reality, building information management (BIM), geospatial information systems (GIS) and big data, laser scanning, mobile mapping, remote sensing and satellites, smart cities, surveying, UAVs, virtual reality and visualization will feature within the fields of architecture and construction, commercial property, environmental, equipment theft, floods, forestry, heritage, highways, hydrography, mining, rail and tunneling.
With geospatial technology now impacting on more and more industries, GEO Business is attracting visitors from a wider range of industry sectors than ever before.
“The geospatial industry is experiencing a huge transformation, everywhere you look at the moment you bare witness to the term ‘geospatial,’” Show Director Caroline Hobden said. “Innovative technology is steadily making its presence known in everyday life, whether it is through the revolutionary capabilities of augmented/virtual reality or the extraordinary data recorded by drones to name just a few, the world is sitting up and taking notice.
“Even the U.K. government budget made mention of geospatial at the end of last year and as a result we excitedly await further announcements about the Geospatial Commission whose focus will be on location aware technologies revolutionising the digital economy.”
The exhibition and seminar program will run alongside a strategic senior-level conference of invited speakers presenting and debating the role of geospatial in powering the Fourth Industrial Revolution, said GEO Business. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is changing how we live, work and communicate. It is reshaping government, education, healthcare and commerce — almost every aspect of life. The conference will celebrate, challenge and develop the role that geospatial has to play in maximizing the digital economy as part of this revolution.
Visitors will also have the unique opportunity to attend the well-established commercial workshop program hosted by exhibitors demonstrating their latest products and services and a full line-up of innovative social activities designed for informal networking with colleagues old and new.
The exhibition, workshops and seminars are free to attend. There is a fee-to-attend the conference with an early-bird discounted rate for registrations before April 16. Public sector, association members and student discounts are also available. Visitors are encouraged to register online in advance to beat the queues onsite.
For more information on stand sales or visitor registration, contact Caroline Hobden at [email protected] or call +44 (0)1453 836363.
China launched two BeiDou-3 navigation satellites into space on Jan. 12 as part of efforts to enable its BeiDou system to provide navigation and positioning services to countries along the Belt and Road by the end of 2018. The Belt and Road Initiative aims to create the world’s largest platform for economic cooperation, encompassing China, Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central and Western Asia, Middle East and Africa, and Central and Eastern Europe.
The twin satellites are coded MEO-7 and MEO-8, the 26th and 27th satellites in the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System. They are based on a newly developed dedicated satellite bus that features a phased-array antenna for navigation signals and a laser retro-reflector. They each weigh about one metric ton, and both have two deployable solar arrays; their design life is 12 years. This was the first BeiDou launch in 2018, which will see an intensive further launch schedule throughout the year.
In his December 2017 “Directions” article in GPS World, Changfeng Yang, chief BeiDou system architect, wrote that “Eighteen BD-3 MEO satellites and one BD-3 GEO satellite will be launched by around the end of 2018. Upon the deployment of those 19 satellites, BD-3 will possess the initial operational capability and serve the countries along the Belt and Road.”
This would bring the constellation to an initial operational capability before the end of this year. China targets completion of the fully operational global system in 2020.
More interference potential from another tower set
Satellite operator Iridium asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in April 2017 to modify its license to add a new class of ground stations called Certus for expanded terrestrial, maritime and aeronautical operations.
Iridium’s 66-satellite constellation provides, in addition to mobile communications signals, the Satelles time and location service: microsecond timing accuracy and 20- to 50-meter unaided position accuracy worldwide (see the “Innovation” column, July 2017 GPS World).
GPSIA. The GPS Innovation Alliance (GPSIA) commented in September, “GPSIA seeks to ensure that radio navigation satellite service (RNSS) receivers operating in the 1559–1610 MHz band are adequately protected from out-of-band emissions (OOBE) generated from the new Certus mobile Earth station (MES) terminals that will operate on the second-generation Iridium satellite system.
“GPSIA and Iridium are actively engaged in constructive discussions regarding the adequacy of that protection, but no final resolution has yet been reached. [….]
“In the unlikely event that GPSIA is unable to reach an agreement with Iridium, it asks the commission to impose limitations on the operation of Certus terminal devices to protect GPS/RNSS operations in the 1559–1610 MHz band at a level equivalent to what terrestrial terminals in the same and other frequency ranges provide at –95 dBW/MHz.”
Hexagon. Hexagon, the parent company of GPS manufacturer NovAtel, commented on Jan. 8, “Certain statements in the modification application regarding output power and amount of terminals to be deployed cause great concern regarding the unimpeded operation of radio navigation satellite service (RNSS) receivers. The application does not include enough information to simulate the impact properly.
“Hexagon politely requests that the FCC will exercise the same due diligence [as] during previous modification applications close to the RNSS bands (for example docket 11-109) and establish a technical working group or a similar testing process that ensures unimpeded coexistence of the modified Iridium terminals with the established RNSS systems.”
Documents related to the case can be found here, on the FCC International Bureau website.
Galileo security center moves to Spain
The Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC) for the European Union’s Galileo satellite system will move from the United Kingdom to Madrid, Spain, as a result of Brexit.
The center, not yet fully operational, is expected to grow to a staff of as many as 30. It controls access to the satellite system and provides around-the-clock monitoring when the main security center near Paris is offline.
The GSMC is operated by the European GNSS Agency. It is one of a number of EU institutions leaving the UK as a result of the 2016 referendum vote.
Spain has another of the fundamental centers of the program, the Loyola de Palacio GNSS Service Center, also in Madrid.
The Institute of Navigation’s (ION) Satellite Division presented Professor Terry Moore with its Johannes Kepler Award for his outstanding contributions to the development of satellite navigation through a sustained and distinguished professional career devoted to research and teaching.
Moore received the award Sept. 29 at the ION GNSS+ Conference in Portland, Ore. Moore is a member of the GPS World Editorial Advisory Board.
Terry Moore has more than 30 years of research experience in surveying, positioning and navigation technologies, and is a consultant and advisor to European and U.K. government organizations and industry.
He has taken a leading role in national and European initiatives aimed at integrating academic research and teaching activities in GNSS and interacting closely with industry.
Moore is credited with extensive work on the introduction and implementation of WGS 84 as the standard reference systems for air and marine navigation, as well as the development of standard software tools for coordinate transformations and map projections used extensively through the aviation industry.
Additionally, he is known for the development of GRINGO software that pioneered the use of raw GPS code and carrier phase data from low cost Garmin receivers. His work has also includes the pioneering of novel methods and algorithms for GPS orbit relaxation; which led to reduced dynamic GPS-based orbit determination for LEO spacecraft, with a real-time implementation.
Moore is the Director of the Nottingham Geospatial Institute (NGI) at the University of Nottingham where he has responsibility for all of NGI’s research and teaching. He is also the founding Director of GRACE, the GNSS Research and Applications Centre of Excellence, which was jointly funded by the University of Nottingham and East Midlands Development Agency, and targets knowledge transfer between the NGI and business. Additionally, he leads the university-wide Aerospace and Transport Technology Research Priority Area.
Moore has supervised numerous research projects funded by industry, research councils, the European Space Agency and the European Commission, and has supervised more than 30 Ph.D. students.
Moore is involved in the volunteer activities of numerous international professional and scientific bodies. He is currently a Royal Institute of Navigation (RIN) Vice-President (now also President Elect) and a member of their Technical Committee, while simultaneously serving on the ION Council as a Technical Representative and as a co-chair of the ION’s Satellite Division’s Technical Peer Review Committee.
He has served on the ION’s Satellite Division Executive Committee on numerous occasions and is a past ION GNSS+ program and general chair.
Moore is a Fellow of both the Institute of Navigation and the Royal Institute of Navigation (RIN). He is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors, a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and an Associate Fellow of the Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Society. In 1999 and 2008 he was awarded the RIN Richey Medal (best paper in the RIN Journal of Navigation), in 2013 was awarded the RIN Harold Spencer-Jones Gold Medal (outstanding contributions to navigation), and in 2016 the RIN J.E.D. Williams Medal (contributions to the RIN).
He holds a BSc degree in Civil Engineering and Ph.D. degree in Space Geodesy, both from the University of Nottingham, where he was promoted to the U.K.’s first Chair of Satellite Navigation in 2001.
The Johannes Kepler Award recognizes and honors an individual for sustained and significant contributions to the development of satellite navigation. It is the highest honor bestowed by the ION’s Satellite Division.
Table 1. Capability and status of complementary positioning technologies. (Chart: GLA)
The General Lighthouse Authorities of the U.K. and Ireland (GLA) reached Initial Operational Capability for eLoran on the East coast of the U.K. Although it was shown to work well technically, it has not been possible to implement the system in Europe on a regional basis.
The GLA have also been involved in the potential development of other, non-satellite based, alternative systems. These may now form the basis of positioning resiliency either individually, or as a tapestry of systems serving the maritime navigator in Europe, unless current plans for commercial operation of eLoran come to fruition.
Here we consider the technical and regulatory status of eLoran in comparison with the other options, and explore necessary steps to protect the maritime navigator in the face of increasing GNSS outages. Several alternative backup technologies could be considered complementary to GNSS for future introduction into ships’ Integrated Navigation Systems. They have varying capabilities, and different limitations and levels of maturity, summarized in Table 1. Figure 1 shows estimated timescales for development and implementation.
Figure 1. Timeline for resilient PNT. (Image: GLA)
Conclusions
■ eLoran is the only complementary backup system that can be implemented within the timescale envisaged for the introduction of e-navigation; however, there are political obstacles to implementation, at least in Europe.
■ R-mode and possibly radar positioning could be introduced by about 2030; however, both have inherent coverage limitations. Feasibility studies are needed to assess their economic viability.
■ Other options, such as inertial systems and signals of opportunity, might emerge as viable alternatives by 2030, but there are large uncertainties about technical and regulatory matters.
■ Quantum devices and options such as bathymetric and geomagnetic positioning can only be considered as longer term and uncertain possibilities.
■ A multi-system solution may offer the best approach. The IMO concept of the Integrated Navigation System aboard vessels, incorporating a multi-system receiver, provides flexibility for the inclusion of the above positioning technologies, if and when they become available, at an affordable cost.
Bluesky has completed a multi-million pound aerial mapping project to assess the impact of vegetation on the electricity network of East Anglia and the South East of England. Working on behalf of UK Power Networks, Bluesky undertook the largest ever combined laser mapping and aerial photography survey commissioned by an electricity distribution network operator in the UK — some 34,000 square kilometers.
The laser mapped (LiDAR) data and aerial photographs were then analyzed to assess the proximity of vegetation to the overhead power lines in order to create a proactive three-year vegetation management program. Bluesky worked in partnership with ADAS, an agricultural and environmental consultancy, to complete the project.
Dedicated survey planes equipped with a lidar mapping system and aerial survey equipment flew the whole of the South East and East of England. Capturing millions of individual laser mapped height measurements and approximately 310,000 aerial images in just over three months, Bluesky successfully completed the unprecedented data capture element of the project within tight project deadlines, in challenging weather conditions and in adherence with strict Air Traffic Control restrictions.
The 80 terabytes of raw data was then processed and analyzed to identify which overhead line spans had vegetation infringement; for example the length of vegetation infestation along each span and its location and distance from the overhead line.
This information has now been incorporated into a 3D web portal that can be viewed from the desktop, enabling UK Power Networks employees to carry out virtual patrols of the network, saving time and reducing the risk of foot patrols, sometimes across difficult terrain including physical barriers such as rivers, ditches, livestock and numerous other potential hazards.
“This innovative £2.5 million project is of immense benefit to our customers and to the company,” said Nigel Hall, head of service development at UK Power Networks. “The risk-based tree-cutting program will help reduce tree-related power cuts for customers, with the additional benefit that it could be carried out without any disturbance to local landowners because it was done from the air rather than on foot.
“As a company it will help us get best value from our £19 million annual tree cutting budget, and the web portal will mean staff can carry out ‘virtual patrols’ from their desk, saving them time and reducing the potential hazards if they had had to walk the lines themselves.”
“Prior to commissioning the LiDAR and aerial mapping project, UK Power Networks undertook regular manual surveys as part of its assessment of network resilience, but the capture of LiDAR and associated aerial photography for the entire catchment area allows for evidence based decision making and long term planning, and provides a proven solution for other network operators,” added Rachel Tidmarsh, managing director of Bluesky.
Roy Dyer, Head of Arboriculture in ADAS and manager of the ADAS contribution to this contract said, “This has been a ground breaking contract. The combination of Bluesky’s technical ability and ADAS’ consultancy experience in managing vegetation near overhead lines enabled us to successfully deliver this challenging contract and improve the management and resilience of the overhead lines owned by UK Power Networks.”
