Created as the result of work researchers at Delft University of Technology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and VSL, the working prototype achieved a location accuracy of 10 centimetres.
The new technology could be important for the implementation of a range of location-based applications, including automated vehicles, quantum communication and next-generation mobile communication systems.
A lot of vital infrastructure relies on global navigation satellite systems such as the US’s GPS and the EU’s Galileo. Reliance on satellites means both have their limitations and vulnerabilities. Their radio signals are weak when received on Earth, and accurate positioning is no longer possible if the radio signals are reflected or blocked by buildings.
“This can make GPS unreliable in urban settings, for instance” said project co-ordinator Christiaan Tiberius of Delft University of Technology, “which is a problem if we ever want to use automated vehicles. Also, citizens...