EGNOS EduTools

STATUS: Finished

PECS project EGNOS EduTools (complete title "Development of Advanced Educational Tools Related to European Space Agency’s EGNOS System") started in March 2008 and was completed in February 2010. The project was run by company Iguassu Software Systems, a.s. It was preceded by  PECS-SISNeT project which after successful completion of all objectives was a good reference in approval process of the EGNOS EduTools project.

With the experience from previous cooperation on SISNeT services and software, the ISS added further value to the fleet of EGNOS educational software with contribution of two brand new software tools – SBAS Message Generator (MeNTOR) and SBAS Simulator. ISS also continued to participate in EGNOS Real-time Monitoring Network activities and further expanded its participation level.

SBAS MeNTOR is software which logically follows the idea of SBAS TeACHER developed in previous SISNeT PECS project. Where the TeACHER enables users to modify contents of SBAS messages in visual way, the SBAS MeNTOR continues with enabling users to define the desired values and states of the whole SBAS (Space Based Augmentation System, e.g. EGNOS, WAAS) and let the software generate all the specific messages of the selected period. The same task could be achieved by TeACHER software, but it would take more time (in order of magnitude) and user would be responsible of linking the data together flawlessly, which is next to impossible.

Fig. 1: SBAS MeNTOR – editing ionospheric corrections. Credits: Iguassu

The second tool is the SBAS Simulator, which is a type of system volume simulator. The SBAS Simulator is software that allows users to process given scenario and produce a prediction of the SBAS operation under those circumstances. Such tools already exist, but it is not possible to make them available to public for various licensing and non-free platform dependency reasons. This software tool was developed in Java and therefore available to user over Internet, regardless of their platform or location.

Fig. 2: SBAS Simulator - HDOP statistics for the specific region. Credits: Iguassu

The tool provides basic set of functions one would expect from this type of tool. It can compute values for a single point, for multiple points evenly spaced within a grid over a geographical area and plot them in easily readable way. The tool is very user friendly and provides all necessary user interface elements to setup up the simulation, view the results and store the graphical representation of those as an image.

Fig. 3: SBAS Simulator - 3D view. Credits: Iguassu

The tool is based on Java platform and is not bound to any licensing that will limit users in usage. The tool could be executed from any java-enabled computer. At present time the tool is available on Iguassu’s website (http://www.iguassu.cz/sbas-sim) and will be handed over to ESA’s web content team, with Iguassu full support if necessary.

It has been noted that certain activities could have been carried out much more effectively by embedding at least one member of the PECS team with the ESA GNSS staff. Therefore PI of the project spent 6 months in ESA´s EGNOS  Project Office in Toulouse. The transfer of know-how was deeper and broader in daily contact with ESA experts and with access to the ESA GNSS facilities. Also some activities were carried out even more quickly and hence effectively, by having direct daily interface with the ESA expert team.

Fig. 4: SBAS Simulator – HDOP statistics for the specific region. Credits: Iguasssu

Project duration: 2008 - 2010
Approved budged: 481 820 EUR
Principal Investigator: Miroslav Houdek
Address: Iguassu Software Systems a.s.
Evropska 61, 160 00 Praha 6
miroslav.houdek@iguassu.cz