Skip to main content

Ertico reaches for stars with ESA

Agreement with European Space Agency will look at innovative tech for positioning
By Adam Hill September 2, 2022 Read time: 2 mins
Both organisations can develop use cases to demonstrate 'the value of connectivity and geo-positioning through satellite communication' (© Scyther5 | Dreamstime.com)

Ertico – ITS Europe has signed a Memorandum of Intent (MoI) with the European Space Agency (ESA) to explore the use of innovative tech in mobility.

The organisations say the collaboration "will explore space technology and services to improve the safety and reliability of assisted and automated vehicles on European roads and promote innovation in the sector".

Joost Vantomme, Ertico CEO, said the agreement was "another example of how we broaden and build bridges in the entire ecosystem".

"Both our organisations have the potential to enable use cases that truly demonstrate the value of connectivity and geo-positioning through satellite communication,” he added.

The partners will exchange knowledge and expertise to advance the future of automated and sustainable mobility and improve the reliability of data.

Javier Benedicto, ESA’s director of navigation, says: “Ertico’s comprehensive roadmap defines a future where vehicles communicate with each other, the roads they drive on and other infrastructure – but also highlights the fundamental need for ubiquitous, precise, and reliable positioning, navigation and timing [PNT] information."

He says the potential for synergy with ESA’s Navigation Innovation and Support Programme (Navisp) "is evident and enormous".

Navisp looks at new ways to provide reliable PNT information, which is fundamental to developing automated vehicles, as well as future traffic management.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Building Europe’s roads for driverless age
    June 17, 2022
    Creating smart, co-operative road transport systems that harness the white heat of technology won’t be easy but a new document shows the way – Andrew Stone does some reading…
  • Transport problems need ''strong action from policymakers”
    June 7, 2012
    Taking advantage of the attendance of the heads of ITS Asia-Pacific, ITS America, Ertico – ITS Europe, and ITS Malaysia as the host nation of the recent 12th ITS Asia-Pacific Forum in Kuala Lumpur in April, ITS International initiated a round table discussion on the big ITS issues confronting the individual regions. For such a diverse collection of advanced and emerging nations spanning the globe, in terms of the advancement of ITS, a common single issue emerges above all others
  • Coalition to shape EU e-scooter policies 
    February 12, 2021
    New group is prioritising urban mobility, data governance and circular economy 
  • Doris Bures outlines Austrias influence on ITS
    October 22, 2012
    Austria has built a strong ITS industry and become an important location in the sector. Doris Bures, Federal Minister for Transport, Innovation and Technology talks about what the country has to offer the global ITS community