Demonstrator of EGNSS Services based on Time Reference Architecture

DEMETRA aims to demonstrate the feasibility of delivering early EGNSS timing services to end users by utilising an operational demonstrator and conducting tests with pilot applications. Based on the current practice of national metrological laboratories, DEMETRA will define and develop a prototype of a European time disseminator, based on EGNSS. An array of important service features that are necessary for a wide variety of users will be added. These will include: high accuracy calibrated time transfer to a monitored and certified remote time stamping.

The main and specific objectives of the project were:

• To define and design an operational architecture.
• To set-up an operational environment for pilot applications prototyping and testing. 
• To assess the impacts on Galileo infrastructure and Galileo service facilities and to support the provision of Galileo timing services.
• To support the development and test of new applications using these early Galileo timing services.
• To characterise the operational requirements for time services provision that could be made applicable for the future Galileo Time Service Provider.

Nine different time services were proposed for demonstration by consortium partners. These were established at INRIM premises for two validation test campaigns: a closed loop test, aiming to validate the performances, and the second test was performed with user terminals located in a real user environment, integrated into the user application to test the real advantages and feasibility of the new proposed services.