zprávy

Three years ago, the GSA moved its headquarters from Brussels to Prague. Since then, the Agency has been in acceleration mode – expanding both in terms of people and responsibilities. To celebrate the anniversary and highlight the many benefits the GSA is bringing to both Europe and, in particular, the Czech Republic, the Agency held its first Open Days 9 – 10 October.

“In celebration of our third year here in Prague, we decided it was the perfect opportunity to open our doors to our host city,” said GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides, speaking during a ribbon cutting ceremony. “We are excited at the chance to show the public the work we are doing on EGNOS and Galileo.”

Des Dorides noted that although the GSA has been in existence for over a decade, it wasn’t until its relocation to Prague that it took on its current place at the centre for European GNSS programmes. Today, the GSA is charged with the service provision of EGNOS today and Galileo in 2017. It also ensures these services are secure. “Another core function of the GSA is market development, where we are committed to preparing the best return on investment for Europe in terms of both economics and benefits to European citizens,” he added.

Des Dorides was joined  by Head of the European Commission Representation in Prague, Jan Michal, and EU GNSS Security Accreditation Board Chair, Jeremy Blyth, Deputy Czech Transport Minister Kamil Rudolecký and Karel Dobeš, Czech Commissioner for Galileo, among others, who gave guests a comprehensive overview of the GSA, its work and its role in the Czech economy. 

A Bright Future

Despite all the success, there are still challenges ahead. One such challenge, noted by Dobeš, is finding the talent needed to maintain the European GNSS programmes’ momentum into the future. However, judging by the hundreds of excited local students who visited GSA headquarters during Open Days, perhaps this won’t be so much of a challenge after all.

Over 500 students visited the GSA on Friday as part of a classroom visit, where they were able to explore how space technology benefits them on a daily basis via interactive displays and presentations. “I never realised that satellites have such an impact on our lives,” said one local secondary student. “I now have a clear understanding of the European Union, its space programmes, and the GSA – and who knows, maybe one day I’ll be working in the space sector too.”

During the event, over 2000 people came through the GSA’s doors. Saturday included a range of workshops and activities, including the opportunity to see a model Galileo satellite and the first GSA Space Film Festival. Plans for a second edition next year are already in the works.

Benefiting the Czech Republic

Open Days was also an occasion to highlight how the GSA’s location in Prague is benefiting the Czech Republic. “From my perspective, we have seen a growing interest from Czech industry in the GNSS market,” said des Dorides. “We planted the seeds by relocating here and today we are seeing the results as more space applications and products are coming onto the market that originate from the Czech Republic.”

The Czech aerospace industry is also receiving support from the federal government. Rudolecký noted that the government is dedicated to ensuring the aerospace industry in the Czech Republic continues to expand. In support of this mission, the government recently approved 200 million Czech Koruna (EUR 7 million) to be invested in various space programmes. “I think we can invest more and do more, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish together with the GSA in the years to come.”

According to a recent GSA study, the Agency’s move has impacted the Czech economy both directly and indirectly. For example, it has had a direct impact through its employment of Czech citizens (currently 18 permanent staff and 13 trainees) and an indirect impact via the Agency’s various procurement activities.

Czech companies are also benefiting from the GSA’s location in Prague. Since the relocation, an increasing number of companies and consortia of Czech companies and institutions have teamed up and applied for European R&D funding programme such as FP7 or Horizon 2020.

Organisation of R&D-focused workshops in Prague as the 2014 European Space Solutions conference or the H2020 workshops is raising awareness on the sectors and the European activities. The networking opportunities at such conferences also play a role in enabling SMEs that would not otherwise participate in such an event to test ideas and establish connections that could lead to successful applications.

The GSA in Prague is indeed changing horizons in the Czech Republic.

More Information

GSA Open Days - Image Gallery

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

At this year’s ITS World Congress in Bordeaux, France, the European GNSS Agency (GSA) demonstrated the added value of European GNSS in intelligent transportation systems.

Although GNSS is a vital part of ITS (Intelligent Transportation Systems), its role in applications often goes unseen. To help remedy this misperception, this year GNSS took centre stage at the annual ITS World Congress, with the GSA showcasing the many uses of satellite navigation at its European GNSS Village stand. The stand was organised in conjunction with the Joint EUropean Project for International ITS/EGNSS awareness Raising, also known as JUPITER, a Horizon 2020 supported project.

The village showcased 5 local authorities and 20 small and medium enterprises, all demonstrating the use of GNSS, and welcomed over 10 international delegations from across the globe. It also featured speakers from local authorities and transport operators. “The goal of the JUPITER project and the European GNSS Village is twofold,” said GSA Executive Director Carlo des Dorides. “On the one hand, we aim to amplify the success of some of the most innovative European applications of GNSS for ITS. On the other hand, we aim to catalyse resources, investments and partnerships to scale up and really maximise the return on investment.”

It Takes a Village

Through project demonstrations and presentations, the GSA showed how public stakeholders and actors in the transportation industry stand to benefit from implementing innovative solutions based on GNSS.

“The European GNSS Village was a unique opportunity for the JUPITER Project to demonstrate the many benefits of GNSS to key decision makers, public authorities and representatives of the global ITS industry,” said Hanna-Kaisa Saari, a project manager on the JUPITER Project from Aerospace Valley. “Through these demonstrations and interactions, we were able to maximise the visibility and competitiveness of European GNSS to the ITS sector.”

One SME on display at the Village, Foster ITS, will be the first GNSS receiver for ITS applications that offers greater resilience against an increasing range of GNSS threats, taking advantage of the authentication of the signals in the Galileo Open Service. The company demonstrated how it can detect signal attack attempts, provide indicators to users about confidence of positioning, and provide proof of integrity and origin of PVT data through its soon-to-come product line.

Geoimagine, another company exhibiting at the Village, showed off its mobile sensors that optimise itineraries and avoid impulsive, irrational decisions. Using the example of a network of taxis, Geoimagine presented a network optimiser solution for fleet management. Meanwhile, ANGEO, another exhibiting SME, offers a reliable navigation aid to 200 million people suffering from spatial disorientation troubles by using a reliable positioning algorithm and specialised navigation software.

Among several projects on the municipality transport side, Kordis JMK showed how GNSS allows for real time positioning of public transport vehicles, which enables smooth management of transit and ensures passengers always make their bus or train connections. Similarly, the MOBILIS project from Toulouse Metropole works on improving the efficiency and reliability of urban public transportation services.

Moving Towards Intelligent Mobility

The theme of this year’s edition of the ITS World Congress was ‘Towards Intelligent Mobility: Better Use of Space’, which fits perfectly with the services and applications the GSA is developing in the area of road and intelligent transport systems.

“Space and satellite navigation are key enablers for the delivery of the next generation of mobility ,” said des Dorides. “European GNSS offers the precision, robustness and reliability needed for autonomous and connected vehicles, for transport management, and for payment critical systems, to name just a few of the applications we have seen coming onto the market in recent years.”

More Information

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

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) highlights the many benefits of EGNOS to the road, rail, agriculture and surveying sectors during the annual EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, held 29 – 30 September in Copenhagen.

EGNOS may have been built for aviation, but it isn’t meant to be limited by it. A clear message coming out of last week’s EGNOS Service Provision Workshop in Copenhagen is that EGNOS’ benefits extend well beyond the aviation and maritime sectors – benefiting everything from road transportation to rail, agriculture, surveying and mapping.

EGNOS Increases Accuracy

As to the road sector, according to GSA Market Development Officer Carmen Aguilera, “There is a growing interest in optimising the use of roads in Europe, and it is proven that EGNOS can help this by increasing accuracy.”

Aguilera noted that across Europe there is increasing pressure for emergency location sharing. Simultaneously, she also said that navigation devices in smartphones have permeated the market, creating a case for EGNOS in road applications. For example, the eCall system, which will be implemented in all cars in Europe from April 2018, will send an emergency call to 112 in the case of an accident, including precise location, which will help provide faster assistance.

In another example, GNSS can support toll operators in charging levies in compliance with the European Electronic Tolling System Directive. Speaking on Slovakia’s SkyToll system, which earned 43.38 million Euros for the National Motorway Company in Q1 of 2015, GSA Head of Market Development Gian Gherardo Calini said it was an example of the multi-beneficial approach of EGNOS and Galileo. “We have achieved a lot of results, and now it is the time of the user,” he said. “We have to make sure they are satisfied and the system will constantly improve.”

Opportunities in Rail

Turning to rail applications, Aguilera said the sector was a difficult environment for EGNOS because of electromagnetic and visibility interference. Still, there are opportunities. Francesco Rispoli of Ansaldo STS presented his company’s ERSAT project, which focuses on adding European GNSS to ERTMS, the most commonly used and safest signal operating system in the world. “I am strongly convinced there is an important synergy between ERTMS and EGNOS and Galileo, and this synergy should help contribute to make us be more competitive in the market,” he said. “What ERSAT is targeting is to reduce the gap between the two, create a common platform for the benefit of all, and accelerate the process of introducing GNSS in real operations.”

From Farm to the Field

Aside from rail and road, EGNOS plays a large role in agriculture, surveying, and mapping. Aguilera said both farmers and public authorities can benefit from agriculture applications such as machine guidance, automatic steering, variable rate technology, asset management, harvest monitoring, and environmental management. For surveying and mapping applications, an array of users can benefit, including public and private surveyors, construction companies, marine operators, and municipalities.

More Information

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

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) highlights the many benefits of EGNOS to the road, rail, agriculture and surveying sectors during the annual EGNOS Service Provision Workshop, held 29 – 30 September in Copenhagen.

EGNOS may have been built for aviation, but it isn’t meant to be limited by it. A clear message coming out of last week’s EGNOS Service Provision Workshop in Copenhagen is that EGNOS’ benefits extend well beyond the aviation and maritime sectors – benefiting everything from road transportation to rail, agriculture, surveying and mapping.

EGNOS Increases Accuracy

As to the road sector, according to GSA Market Development Officer Carmen Aguilera, “There is a growing interest in optimising the use of roads in Europe, and it is proven that EGNOS can help this by increasing accuracy.”

Aguilera noted that across Europe there is increasing pressure for emergency location sharing. Simultaneously, she also said that navigation devices in smartphones have permeated the market, creating a case for EGNOS in road applications. For example, the eCall system, which will be implemented in all cars in Europe from April 2018, will send an emergency call to 112 in the case of an accident, including precise location, which will help provide faster assistance.

In another example, GNSS can support toll operators in charging levies in compliance with the European Electronic Tolling System Directive. Speaking on Slovakia’s SkyToll system, which earned 43.38 million Euros for the National Motorway Company in Q1 of 2015, GSA Head of Market Development Gian Gherardo Calini said it was an example of the multi-beneficial approach of EGNOS and Galileo. “We have achieved a lot of results, and now it is the time of the user,” he said. “We have to make sure they are satisfied and the system will constantly improve.”

Opportunities in Rail

Turning to rail applications, Aguilera said the sector was a difficult environment for EGNOS because of electromagnetic and visibility interference. Still, there are opportunities. Francesco Rispoli of Ansaldo STS presented his company’s ERSAT project, which focuses on adding European GNSS to ERTMS, the most commonly used and safest signal operating system in the world. “I am strongly convinced there is an important synergy between ERTMS and EGNOS and Galileo, and this synergy should help contribute to make us be more competitive in the market,” he said. “What ERSAT is targeting is to reduce the gap between the two, create a common platform for the benefit of all, and accelerate the process of introducing GNSS in real operations.”

From Farm to the Field

Aside from rail and road, EGNOS plays a large role in agriculture, surveying, and mapping. Aguilera said both farmers and public authorities can benefit from agriculture applications such as machine guidance, automatic steering, variable rate technology, asset management, harvest monitoring, and environmental management. For surveying and mapping applications, an array of users can benefit, including public and private surveyors, construction companies, marine operators, and municipalities.

More Information

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