GEO-VISION targets developments of GNSS-enabled technology and functions that will provide SME based GNSS applications (GALILEO 2 – 2014-2015, SME Based EGNSS Applications.)
Europe and the World are facing sever challenges in how to reduce the impact of emergencies and disasters, both natural and man-made. These happen, but we can prepare the management of them by improving preparedness, response and recovery.
GNSS, and especially Galileo, is a key enabler for addressing some of the largest challenges of our society, by helping to provide timely and relevant geo-spatial information. A large number of lives and societies are affected in humanitarian and economical ways every year due to emergencies, crisis, missing security and larger disasters. From the target focus areas we cover citizen safety, mobility, disaster management and climate action including natural catastrophes.
A main innovation focus is a mission-critical visual communication system, where, in addition to true location and time, also trust, reliability and robustness is needed in all elements, ranging from the information capture via the communications to the analysis and decisions. That system has been named RAIDO, and complements a live mapping solution by UNOSAT. GEO-VISION is the sum of both. GNSS is essential for reducing financial and humanitarian impacts of disasters, and technical innovations are related to how GNSS is used for providing trust and confidentiality into data and communications, and managing optimal networking.
A core issue is that in mission-critical visual communication, the photos and video targets use for situational awareness. The ability to make better decisions is key, and visual content should have effect on operations. Precision is needed, with low delay and cost. Traditional “pixel-moving” technology cannot be used effectively.
Several markets for the technology are connected, and we are in working relationships with all. The main markets targeted were:
• Humanitarian: Disaster response (United Nations) and emergency management (civil protection).
• Financial: Damage documentation for cost claims in smaller (Insurance) and larger (Government) Scale.
• Security: Police, surveillance, citizen safety, Government operations, peace keeping.
• Satellite and Mobile communication: Low bandwidth visual communication is relevant for mobile systems and in fact also terrestrial mobile networks with poor coverage or congestion. It´s important to keep in mind that during disasters the capacity is often reduced and the demand is increased.
• UAV operations: When UAVs are used for the target scenarios, real-time sharing of the information captured beyond the location of the pilot is required, but as flights may be conducted in poor coverage areas too, bandwidth-efficient solutions are need.
