Andrew Dempster
Professor, University of New South Wales, Australia
 
Use of GNSS Data as Evidence
 

Digital data as evidence is not new. Procedures and approaches have been developed for what is called "digital forensics". Textbooks have even been written for some types of satellite data such as remote sensing. However, there is very little to assist courts in knowing whether GNSS data is admissible, or of expected quality. This talk explores how lawyers and expert witnesses can deal with GNSS data with confidence.

Biography

Professor Andrew Dempster is Director of the Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research (ACSER) in the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). He has a BE and MEngSc from UNSW and a PhD from the University of Cambridge in efficient circuits for signal processing arithmetic. He was system engineer and project manager for the first GPS receiver developed in Australia in the late 80s and has been involved in satellite navigation ever since. His current research interests are in satellite navigation receiver design and signal processing, areas where he has six patents, and new location technologies. He is leading the development of space engineering research at ACSER.

 

Jonathan Kelly Ass. Prof., University of Toronto, Canada   The Past, Present, and Future of Visual-Inertial Navigation

Abstract Fusing visual and inertial sensor data has been shown to provide robust and reliable navigation information under a wide range of dynamic conditions, without the need for GNSS aiding. This talk will provide context for various fusion techniques, describe current trends and applications, and discuss potential future advances in the area. In particular, the talk will explore the use of visual-inertial systems for the simultaneous localization and mapping task that has been extensively studied by the robotics community.

Biography   Jonathan Kelly is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies, and directs the Space & Terrestrial Autonomous Robotic Systems (STARS) Laboratory. Prior to joining the University of Toronto, he was a postdoctoral researcher in the Robust Robotics Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Kelly received his PhD degree from the University of Southern California, where his dissertation work focused on calibration methods for visual-inertial navigation systems. Prior to graduate school, he was a software engineer at the Canadian Space Agency in Montreal, Canada.  His research interests lie primarily in the areas of sensor fusion, estimation, and machine learning for navigation and mapping, applied to both robotics and human-centred assistive technologies

Valérie Renaudin Institut Français des Sciences et Technologies des Transports, de l'Aménagement et des Réseaux (IFSTTAR), France Integrating Human Dimension in the Development of Pedestrian Navigation

Abstract The rise of new connected objects handheld, worn on the wrist, as jewelry or on glasses offers new opportunities for improving people's mobility. In parallel, the complexity of human movements introduces new challenges in the development of positioning and navigation algorithms for people. Finding the right strategy to fuse available signals for estimating an accurate and reliable location everywhere can be complex. To handle this issue, this talk discusses the current status and ongoing trends in pedestrian navigation with a focus on pedestrian dead reckoning approaches. It addresses the integration of human gait features to improve displacement estimation models. Novel use of digital urban data and degraded urban radio signal measurements to improve the pedestrian’s location estimate in hybridization filter is also presented.

Biography   Valerie RENAUDIN received the M.Sc. degree in geomatics engineering in 1999 and the Ph.D. degree in computer, communication, and information sciences from EPFL, Switzerland in 2009. She was a Technical Director with Swissat Company, developing real-time geopositioning solutions based on a permanent GNSS network and a Senior Research Associate with PLAN Group, University of Calgary, Canada. She is currently leading the GEOLOC Laboratory at IFSTTAR in France. Her research focuses on outdoor/indoor navigation using GNSS, inertial and magnetic data, particularly for pedestrians to improve sustainable personal mobility. She is the recipient of the European Marie Curie Career Integration Grant for the smartWALK project.

 
  Karen Van Dyke
Director, PNT & Spectrum Management, U.S. Department of Transportation
 
Resilient Positioning, Navigation, and Timing
 

Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) and radiofrequency spectrum management services are essential to critical infrastructure applications, including transportation for safety-of-life applications such as the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), Positive Train Control, and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). U.S. Space-Based PNT Policy states that the U.S. must continue to improve and maintain the Global Positioning System (GPS), augmentation systems, and back-up capabilities to meet growing national, homeland, and economic security requirements, as well as those from the civil, commercial, and scientific communities.  NSPD-39 recognizes that GPS has grown into a global utility that is integral to U.S. national security, economic growth, transportation safety, and homeland security, and are an essential element of the worldwide economic infrastructure. 

Increasing occurrences of unintentional and intentional interference to GPS, including the spoofing of the signal have been observed. It is important to increase awareness of vulnerabilities of GPS, evaluate the impact, and to research complementary sources of PNT to increase resiliency and make intentional jamming and spoofing less desirable. Also, best practices should be adhered to for implementation and installation of GPS receivers in critical infrastructure applications. With an increased focus on autonomous vehicles for all modes of transportation, there is a need to focus on multi-sensor navigation technologies to ensure reliable operation of vehicles without a human in the loop. This research should be aligned with National PNT Architecture recommendations to overcome capability gaps predominantly resulting from the limitations of space-based PNT. As the civil lead for GPS, the U.S. Department of Transportation also has been conducting the GPS Adjacent Band Compatibility Assessment to understand the power levels that can be tolerated in the radiofrequency bands adjacent to GPS, given increasing demand for use of those adjacent frequency bands for non-space commercial applications. This paper will address resilient PNT from the standpoint of both protecting GPS and GNSS from interference, as well as increasing resiliency by implementation of best practices and utilization of other PNT technologies.