1. Introduction
The European Navigation Conference 2024 (ENC 2024) took place at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) of the European Space Agency (ESA) in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, from 22 to 24 May 2024.
The broad and interdisciplinary scope of the conference was the science and practice of Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) as applicable to scientists, technicians, policy makers, and users. Once again, ENC 2024 addressed, as its main theme, the important topic on almost everyone’s minds, that of Resilient Navigation.
Resilience in position determination concerns the robustness of individual components by considering redundancy, dissimilarity, specific algorithms, and data processing techniques. This applies to all elements of the Position Navigation and Timing (PNT) solution: the signal measurement domain, any infrastructural elements, service provision, and end-user implementation. These topics were addressed through dedicated parallel sessions on algorithms and methods, multi-sensor and autonomous PNT, safety-critical navigation, future trends in navigation, and navigation for mass markets.
Navigation resilience requires vulnerabilities of the PNT solution to be addressed, but the vulnerabilities of the various types of data used for navigation must also be carefully considered. These data include map information, various databases, routing/path construction, and guidance and control. Different application domains, such as aviation, maritime, space and surface navigation, also have widely different implementations, through many factors such as the systems, the interface with human operators and the regulatory environments in which we operate.
2. Sessions
In response to submitted papers considering the topics described above, the conference was organised into five tracks, comprising a total of 152 presentations arranged across 44 sessions, including 4 plenary sessions and 1 poster session. Over 350 delegates attended ENC 2024 from around the world. The programme consisted of the following tracks and parallel sessions:
- Algorithms and methods
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- High-Accuracy Algorithms and Techniques
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- Advanced GNSS Techniques (1, 2)
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- Advanced Methods for Aviation Application
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- Advanced Processing Techniques
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- Simulation and Testing
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- Atmospheric Modelling and Sensing (1, 2)
- Multi-sensor and autonomous PNT
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- Multi-Sensor Systems for UAVs
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- Multi-Sensor and Augmented PNT
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- Urban and Indoor Environments
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- Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
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- Alternative and Complementary PNT (1, 2)
- Safety-critical navigation
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- Interference, Jamming and Spoofing (1, 2, 3, 4)
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- Performance Prediction, Monitoring and Assessment (1, 2)
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- Integrity and Interference (1, 2, 3)
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- Aviation Applications
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- Rail Applications
- Future trends in navigation
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- Space, Lunar and Extra-Terrestrial Navigation (1, 2, 3, 4)
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- LEO Systems and PNT (1, 2, 3)
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- Quantum PNT
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- Future Trends in Navigation Technology
- Navigation for mass markets
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- PNT in Urban and Indoor Environments (1, 2)
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- New Technologies, Opportunities and Challenges
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- Standards and Testbeds
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- Application of GNSS from Smartphones
3. Plenary Talks
ENC 2024 included a range of plenary talks, reflecting the key issues and global developments in the field of navigation. International bodies such as the European Space Agency, UK Space Agency, US Space Force, and the European Commission were all represented.
The plenary talks highlighted the shared challenges and a sense of collaboration among the community that left the audience feeling inspired. Javier Benedicto, ESA’s Director of Navigation, declared a “golden age of PNT” during the closing plenary.
Plenary talks included the following:
- Welcome from the ENC 2024 Programme Chairs—Prof Terry Moore and Dr Ramsey Faragher
- ESA Shaping the Future of Navigation—Marco Falcone, Head of Future Navigation, ESA
- Moving from Positioning to Resilient Navigation—Gerhard Berz, Head of Navigation and Spectrum, Eurocontrol
- US GPS Briefing—Col Stephen A. Hobbs, Vice Commander—PNT Delta (Provisional)
- Electronic Warfare and its Civil Spillover Effects—Prof. Todd Humphreys, Professor of Aerospace Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin
- UK Space Agency Briefing—Harshbir Sangha, Missions and Capabilities Director, UK Space Agency
- EGNOS present and future—Hélène Gauthier, Exploitations, services and evolution of European GNSS, EC
- Spaceopal: Innovation and Opportunity in GNSS—Sebastian Fedeli, Procurement & Sales Director, spaceopal GmbH
- Developments and Emerging Trends in Spaceborne GNSS—Prof. Oliver Montenbruck, Head of GNSS Technology and Navigation, DLR/GSOC
- Navigating New Frontiers: Lunar and Beyond—Javier Ventura-Traveset and Floor Melman, European Space Agency
- ESA Navigation Vision & Perspectives—Javier Benedicto, Director of Navigation, ESA
4. Outstanding Paper Awards
During the conference, the session chairs were invited to nominate presentations from their sessions for recognition in the Best Presentations. A total of 8 Best Presentations were announced by the ENC 2024 Technical Committee Co-Chair, Prof Terry Moore, during the Closing Plenary.
Best Presentations:
- Algorithms and Methods
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- “A Model for Data-Pilot Biases in Presence of Satellite and Receiver Imperfections”—Dr Christoph Enneking, German Aerospace Center (DLR)
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- “Putting the Synthetic GNSS Meta-signal Paradigm into Practice: Application to Automotive Market Devices”—Domenico Di Grazia, STMicroelectronics Srl
- Multi-Sensor and Autonomous Navigation
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- “Enhancing GNSS Robustness in Automotive Applications with Supercorrelation: Experimental Results in Urban and Under-foliage Scenarios”—Javier Gonzalo Garcia Perez, Focal Point Positioning
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- “GNSS Constellations Monitoring using a Phased Array Antenna system”—Lionel Tombakdjian, UniCA/CNRS
- Safety Critical Navigation
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- “Permanent Train-side GNSS Multipath Characterization Considering Time-Correlation for Safe Railway Localization”—Ana Kliman, German Aerospace Center (DLR)
- Future Trends in Navigation
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- “LEO-PNT Signals in L, S and C-band: Comparative Tracking Results from a Hardware Receiver Prototype”—Dr Sibren De Bast, Man & Brouw
- Navigation for the Mass Market
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- “Cosmic Ray Muons for Positioning and Navigation in GPS/GNSS Denied Locations”—Prof Lee Thompson, Geoptic
- Best Poster
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- “Galileo HAS in Real-time Geosciences Applications”—Dr Kamil Kazmierski, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences
In particular, we would like to thank our conference partner, the European Space Agency (ESA) (Figure 1):
Figure 1.
ENC 2024 conference partner.
We extend our special thanks to our gold sponsors (Figure 2):
Figure 2.
ENC 2024 gold sponsors.
- Spirent;
- Spaceopal.
In addition, we sincerely thank our silver sponsors (Figure 3):
Figure 3.
ENC 2024 silver sponsors.
- EUSPA;
- GMV;
- Safran;
- QinetiQ.
Finally, we sincerely thank all the authors who contributed to ENC 2024 and to the publication of this volume. Thanks to their efforts, we believe that the scope and depth of these papers offer a great wealth of information, and we hope that you will enjoy reading this collection of peer-reviewed papers.
Acknowledgments
ENC 2024 would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude to all involved in making the conference a success, including the Netherlands Institute of Navigation, the Local Organising Committee, the Scientific–Technical Program Committee, the International Advisory Committee, the technical directors, session chairs and co-chairs, the paper reviewers, and the editorial team, who all and without exception voluntarily spent considerable time and effort over a period of more than one year.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
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