GNSS

Galileo ground segment updates

The European Space Agency (ESA) has upgraded the ground segment of the Galileo satellite navigation system, without any disruption to its users. This update enhances the Galileo Control Segment responsible for managing the constellation of orbiting satellites.

The upgrade involved a series of improvements to both the operational control centers and the extensive network of ground stations. These enhancements are designed to boost the robustness and reliability of the Galileo system, which is crucial to critical applications such as navigation, timing services and emergency response.

With Galileo’s First Generation close to completion, the ground segment required an upgrade to System Build 2.0 to bring critical enhancements to the system, especially for the roll-out of the Public Regulated Service (PRS), which provides highly accurate and robust encrypted signals for authorized governmental users

With the cooperation of the European Union Space Programme Agency (EUSPA) and key industrial partners, ESA ensured a seamless transition, highlighting the effectiveness of international collaboration in advancing satellite navigation technologies. www.esa.int

EASA updates advisory on navigation interference

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has updated its Safety Information Bulletin (SIB) to address the growing number of GNSS outages and disruptions.

This updated advisory, SIB No. 2022- 02R3, highlights the increasing sophistication and impact of GNSS jamming and spoofing, which have become significant concerns for aviation safety.

The bulletin is directed at competent authorities, Air Traffic Management/Air Navigation Services (ATM/ ANS) providers, air operators, aircraft and equipment manufacturers and organizations involved in the design or production of ATM/ANS equipment. It aims to inform these stakeholders about the risks and necessary precautions related to GNSS interference. www.easa.europa.eu

Department of Transportation awards $7 million for Complementary PNT Technologies

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded contracts to nine Complementary Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) technology vendors. The primary and most recognizable PNT service supporting critical infrastructure is the GPS. Because GPS relies on signals broadcast from satellites in medium Earth orbit (MEO), the signal strength at the receiver is low and thus vulnerable to intentional and unintentional disruptions. These awards will enable DOT to conduct real-world field tests of commercial PNT technologies to facilitate adoption into systems that depend on secure and reliable PNT services.

Awarded through the Volpe Center, in response to the Rapid Phase of the DOT Complementary PNT Action Plan, and totaling more than $7.2 million, these awards provide funding for instrumentation, testing, and evaluation of Complementary PNT technologies at field test ranges in conjunction with critical infrastructure owners and operators. The goal is to facilitate adoption of Complementary PNT technologies to improve PNT resiliency. www.transportation.gov

KrattWorks awarded $6M for GNSS-free navigation

The European Defense Fund (EDF) and the Ministries of Defense of Estonia and Finland have awarded a $6 million investment to Project BadB, a consortium led by KrattWorks, an Estonian defense technology company. The project focuses on developing advanced navigation solutions for land and aerial vehicles that operate independently of GNSS.

Specific objectives of the project include the development of weatherindependent up-to-date satellite imagery maps for unmanned aerial and ground vehicles, a machine vision module, an image recognition system and a path planning system, based on sensor data, cross-platform data sharing and swarming. www.krattworks.com

Eos Positioning Systems unveils Skadi Series product line

Eos Positioning Systems has released the Skadi Series product line. It consists of high-accuracy GNSS receivers designed to enhance field crews’ productivity, safety and flexibility.

Skadi Tilt Compensation allows users to capture data without needing to level their survey range pole. When activated on an RTK-enabled Skadi Series receiver, this feature allows users to rely on the receiver to correct errors caused by tilted range pole angles during data collection.

The Skadi Smart Handle introduces two additional features, powered by accurate lidar and MEMS sensor measurements. Users can activate an Invisible Range Pole to provide continuous elevationto-the-ground measurements below the hand–held Skadi receiver. eos-gnss.com

Emlid upgrades RTK rover

Emlid has released upgrades for its ultralight Reach RX Network real-time kinematics (RTK) rover. It features MFi (Made for iPhone/iPad) certification and is fully compatible with ArcGIS, QGIS and other GIS apps for both iOS and Android. It offers precise positioning while receiving corrections through NTRIP. The device tracks GPS/QZSS, Galileo, GLONASS and BeiDou. It gets a fix in less than 5 seconds, delivering centimeter-level accuracy even in challenging conditions. emlid.com