On 27 November 2023, the ESA Commercialisation Days: Transportation event will take place. Key actors from the transportation and space sectors will come together to develop new synergies. Read the story below from Syntony GNSS, one of the startups that will pitch during the event.
Syntony GNSS, founded in 2015, provides Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) solutions mainly to aerospace and transportation industries. It is the only company capable of extending GNSS precise positioning, and particularly Galileo, to underground mobility.
The SubWAVE solution extends Galileo/GPS coverage to equipped underground facilities. The success of this solution and the development of Syntony worldwide is directly linked to the support of ESA (through various contacts and ESA BIC Network).
Global Navigation Satellite Systems like Galileo are available around the planet and provide precise location details. This contributes to the efficiency and safety for professional actors, and eases mobility for all smartphone users in everyday life. However, when travelling through a tunnel this service becomes unavailable, along with the safety and comfort it brings.
The solution
The SubWAVE solution brings Galileo and GPS signals into tunnels seamlessly with full compatibility with existing end users’ devices. Using existing telecom infrastructure (underground distributed antenna systems), SubWAVE synchronizes with Galileo and GPS constellations. This emulates in real-time the out-of-reach underground signals, as if they were able to penetrate the ground. GNSS-compatible receivers in the tunnel can then compute their Position, Velocity, and Time (PVT), or pass it along to a management system without any add-on (software or hardware).
By offering operators and users PVT information, SubWAVE brings a crucial tool to optimize, secure, and enhance underground operations and travel.
Workers and large machines (trains, maintenance trucks, autonomous application, etc.) can be located in real-time to avoid collision or optimize traffic conditions. Similarly, personal users can follow directions from their smartphones in their cars and prevent traffic jams or be located in case emergency. Syntony has also developed a so-called indoor-RTK mode, offering high precision to professional users that require it, like autonomous vehicles.
A key example of the implementation of SubWAVE solution is the subway system of Stockholm. This technology has been in use, underground, for more than 5 years and has proven a success. In this example they are mainly using the system for its safety application.
The deployment of SubWAVE solution around the world is underway, to help standardise navigation and location underground. It is currently on the way to be integrated in 3GPP standard. Extending GALILEO availability to underground places is a key success of GALILEO and will surely contribute to its worldwide adaptation.
Syntony GNSS Headquarters are in Toulouse, France, but the company has subsidiaries in Paris, Montréal, and New York, as well as a vast network of distributors and partners all over the world. Syntony is an ESA BIC Sud France Alumni and has raised more than 12 M€ (financial and corporate VCs).
Register now to the ESA Commercialisation Days: Transportation