The Data Collection Network : EGNOS revealed

In the frame of the activities in preparation for the future EGNOS Operational Validation, Eurocontrol has established a standardised data collection environment to perform regular EGNOS System Test Bed (ESTB) performance monitoring. Monitor stations have been set up at six different universities geographically distributed around Europe. Thanks to the weekly data collection and evaluation already performed since late 2001, a wide expertise has been built up on the tools that are currently being developed for the future EGNOS Operational Validation, as well as an understanding of how an SBAS system works and how its performance can be evaluated. It is anticipated that the sites of the Data Collection Network in addition to the States contributions, will be the baseline for the validation monitoring activities that will be performed in the frame of the EGNOS Operational Validation to demonstrate that the user requirements defined in ICAO SARPS [3] in terms of Required Navigation Performance (RNP) parameters are met. Currently the data collection network is contributing by means of dedicated weekly campaigns, to the definition of the philosophy and processes to be applied for analysis and assessment of the SBAS system performances. The actual performance achieved at each location is computed and can be checked against the RNP requirements, and in addition any anomalies identified are analysed in detail to assess the cause, the probability of re-occurrence and possible mitigation techniques from the user side. All the lessons learned should contribute to the definition of standardised data processing and analysis techniques to be used in the operational validation process.