Unmanned Aerial Vehicle to Proivde Satellite Navigation

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With unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) representing a rapidly expanding user base, a new UAV is joinging the ranks of the Navigation Laboratory of the European Space Agency (ESA). The lab has acquired a UAV that can carry different types of satellite navigation receivers to collect data for follow-on analysis.

The NavLab based in the Netherlands is focused on the testing, analysis and characterization of navigation systems for both ESA and external customers.

The new UAV is a timely addition to NavLab’s suite of platforms for testing GNSS technologies and techniques. Other tools include static, mobile and pedestrian platforms and a pair of test vans.

Along with receivers and antennas, the UAV can host radio-frequency spectrum samplers and support equipment such as inertial sensors and stereo cameras, allowing the assessment of performance in specific dynamics and environments related to UAV applications, such as approach, landing, flying beside buildings or indoors, according to ESA’s website.