PRESENTATION

You can find here the ESA presentation of the Programme.

OVERVIEW

Objectives

The main NAVISP objective is to facilitate the generation of Satellite Navigation/PNT innovative propositions with participating States and their industry, in coordination with EU and its institutions.

NAVISP is an important element for the overall European GNSS landscape, capable of leveraging both ESA expertise gained through Galileo, EGNOS and Navigation Programmes and the existing industrial base of the European Navigation sector.

It will support European industry in succeeding in the highly competitive and rapidly-evolving global market for Satellite Navigation, and more broadly PNT technologies and services, while supporting participating States in enhancing their national objectives and capabilities in the sector, by:

1. Addressing   the   end-to-end   PNT   value   chain   with   a   view   to enhancing MS industrial capabilities in Satellite Navigation while stimulating jobs and growth in the space   sector;
2. Supporting national industry to strengthen the technology readiness of the relevant product portfolio and the emergence of new entrants onto the PNT market;
3. Mitigating the relevant risks, namely:
   • Technology risks: Related to the technology readiness, ability to deliver the targeted performance and/or expected QoS (Quality of Service), long-term ability to compete/complement with non-space technologies;
   • Market and business risks: related to the uncertainty of commercial success of the developed technology, and to the development and implementation  of new business  models  with considerable high- risk/high-potential returns;
   • Regulatory risks: Difficulty in developing products or services by market  regulatory  barriers  or  dominant  position  of  incumbent suppliers;
4. Supporting PNT national programmes and relevant institutional activities following ad hoc participant MS’s request.

NAVISP does not duplicate nor change the basis on which the strategy and approach for R&D related to the evolution of the Galileo and EGNOS systems is determined and controlled through the established EU mechanisms.

Structure and funding of NAVISP

The NAVISP programme is structured according to three Elements that complement each other and contribute to the above programme objectives. The distinctive nature of each Element is tailored to meet both industry demands and participating States national objectives.

Element 1: Innovation in Satellite Navigation

The main goal of Element 1 is to generate innovative concepts, techniques, technologies and systems linked to the PNT sector, along the entire value chain. The highly dynamic PNT environment GNSS components shall not be considered in isolation but in combination with other PNT technologies to enable the emergence of attractive solutions. Such a context calls for a new paradigm where new concepts, new capabilities and a new culture would have to be developed in order to respond to the unveiled demands of the PNT sector, so far not yet leveraging the full potential space-based solutions are and will be offering. In return, the net effect of this dynamic will be to enable a cross fertilisation of expertise between different stakeholders of the PNT domain and to facilitate the presence of the EGNSS infrastructure in the future challenges of the PNT world.

The specific objectives of this Element are:

• Perform feasibility studies and viability analysis for the emergence of new concepts in the PNT world;
• Contributing to the formulation and implementation of PNT technology  innovation;
• Proof of concept of promising PNT-based services.

Element 1 will be populated via a yearly workplan to be presented for approval at the corresponding PB-NAV. Dedicated workshops will be organised with relevant stakeholders and involving participating States, the EC and the GSA. Promising ideas will feed yearly workplan, to be implemented after PB-NAV approval. The workplan will be implemented via competitive tenders. This Element will call for a fully funded approach.

Element 1 will not establish or duplicate the strategy or plan for the evolution of Galileo or EGNOS which is the responsibility of the EU through the Working Group EGNSS Evolution and the Horizon 2020 Programme Committee.

Element 2: Competitiveness

The goal of Element 2 is to maintain and improve the capability and competitiveness of the industry of the participating States in the global market for Satellite Navigation, and more broadly PNT technologies and services. In this context, the wider ambition towards the overall PNT sector is justified by the necessity to facilitate cross-fertilisation between space- based and terrestrial positioning technologies. Element 2 will ensure the readiness of the industry to effectively respond to emerging market opportunities by focusing its activities on products ready for the commercial or institutional market. Ad hoc technologies and product development activities along the whole Satellite Navigation value chain and more broadly PNT products will be targeted. In the frame of Element 2, industry will identify and carry out development activities in the space segment, ground segment and user segment areas on the basis of proposals made by industry to develop products aligned with their plans for future exploitation.

The content of Element 2 will be activities which have been identified by industry as having clear potential for being applied in the area of PNT. The activities may address completely new products of a disruptive nature, may be an upgrading or improvement of an existing product or may address a continuation of an activity funded in another framework within another European institutional programme, a national programme or an industrial/academic research programme. The activities shall aim at resulting in a product ready for commercial exploitation. Activities are to be related to one or more of the following topics:

• improvement  or  development  of  satellite  navigation  platform  and payload system and equipment designs;
• improvement or development of the satellite navigation ground segment system and equipment designs;
• development of PNT products with a direct relevance to satellite-based navigation.

For this specific element, ESA will issue a continuous open call capable of stimulating unsolicited proposals, the eligibility of which will be indicated by the relevant participating State (i.e. support letter). The pre-commercial nature of this programme element will call for a co-funding approach to be envisaged.

Element 3: Support to Member States

Element 3 is focused on participating States’ priorities and aims at supporting their national navigation activities along the whole value chain. Element 3 configures as an ad-hoc support element, which is envisaged per country and possibly per domain, for the development and promotion of products, applications and services based on GNSS and more widely on PNT systems. Following participating States request, ESA may provide technical assistance in various areas. Element 3 configures as an opportunity for the participating States delegations to animate and coordinate discussions with national entities and to set up the processes to identify and federate institutional demands. This will foster cooperation as well as possible national partnerships with a wide diversity of actors, enlarging the national space community (agency, industries, universities and research centres) and strengthening its relationships with authorities, organisations, institutions, industries and research actors from non-space sectors.

Participating States will individually provide request of support action. Element 3 will typically include activities of three different nature:

• System & technical assistance for the management and implementation of national programmes and activities for the most suitable development and  exploitation  of  GNSS  and  more  widely  PNT  infrastructures  and techniques;
• Development    and    exploitation    of    tools    and    facilities    for test/demonstration  campaigns  aimed  at  the  provision  of  new  PNT products and services for institutional users, at national or multi-national level;
• Exploitation and use of ESA labs, test beds & technical facilities for MS that  asks  to  use  them  for  its  own  programmes,  as  contribution  to national field test activities via complementary laboratory and field test activities based on ESA owned facilities.

The institutional nature of this programme Element will call for a fully funded approach. Ad hoc partnership mechanism should be established on a case by case base ensuring that 100% of ESA’s costs are covered.

Coordination with EC & GSA

The NAVISP Programme will involve a timely coordination between ESA and the EC of the activities to be performed thereunder and those carried out by the EC and GSA.

The scope of this coordination will address all NAVISP activities, although the coordination will be shaped according to the nature of the activity and the applicable implementing rules (specific to the Element the activity belongs to).

The main goal will be:

• To reinforce synergies between NAVISP planned activities and the existing or   already   planned   activities   in   the   EU   funded   European   GNSS development   programmes   with   the   view   to   ensure   coherency   and complementarity;
• To ensure transparency on the activities planned under NAVISP; and
• To keep participating States informed of EU recommendations on NAVISP activities before relevant participating States take their decision with regard to these  activities.