UK SatNav Challenge

SUBMIT YOUR IDEAS BETWEEN 1st May and 31st July 2009 and turn your ideas into commercial success. Register now!!

For further details see below or contact Bill Collins by e-mail billc@hertsbic.co.uk or telephone 01438 310072.

Background and Scope of Ideas

Since 2004 HBIC has developed the UK / Ireland participation of the European Satellite Competition (ESNC), formerly Galileo Masters, designed to encourage new ideas in satellite positioning technology, and provide the best ideas with global market exposure, incubation support and funding assistance.

The competition aims to prepare for the arrival of the Galileo satellite system and is promoted and supported by ESA (European Space Agency), GSA (GNSS Supervisory Authority), T-Systems and DHL amongst others. The competition now draws entries from 11 EU regions, Taiwan and Australia and from 2009 also the USA.

The competition process allows new / existing businesses to put forward ideas, submit them to a panel of expert judges, and have them rated. The UK winner / runners up are then submitted to an international panel of experts who decide on an overall international winner.

• Over the last 4 years 296 ideas have been put forward by UK.
• Over the last 3 years the global applications have grown from 125 in 2006 to 525 in 2008
• The competition takes place from April to October.
• There is a UK region prize as well as an EU global prize (see below)

The UK region has developed two international winners since the competition was established in 2004, a feat matched by only one other Region.

In 2006 the UK regional winner (Geosynch) became overall Galileo Master (based in IOM now working in France), developing seismic simulation for oil companies.

In 2008 the UK regional winner went on to become the first ever triple winner picking up the GSA special topic prize and becoming the overall international winner. It was Sci-Tech Systems, a company based in Burnham on Crouch, Essex which is developing a marine life saving system and is currently based at HBIC in Stevenage.

The prizes they won included

• €20,000
• 12 months incubation support at the centre of their choice – in this case at HBIC
• A free UK patent submission and further assistance with IP matters
• Business plan advice .
• Introductions to technology partners and funding opportunities
• Huge PR both in the UK (BBC, Location & Timing KTN, Royal Institute of Navigation, Metro and shortly the Times) as well as internationally (ESA, EBN magazines, German radio and Japanese magazines)

SUBMIT YOUR IDEAS BETWEEN 1 st May and 31 st July 2009 and turn your ideas into commercial success. Register now!!

or contact Bill Collins by e-mail billc@hertsbic.co.uk or telephone 01438 310072.

The scope of the ideas developed within the competition include a wide range of ideas including

• Tracking the application of medical appliances/information and the medically vulnerable (UK/Australia)
• Tracking carbon credit/trading situations (UK/EU)
• Traffic control modelling and management forecasting UK/EU)
• Tracking agricultural applications (EU)
• Creating real time Formula 1 simulations (EU)
• A picture or mapping data distribution system

All can add value to a better way of life in industry and the UK.

2008 UK and Overall winner: Sci-Tech Systems Ltd – 1st triple winner in the competitions history

Established 2003 with current team.
Smart Award 2003, European Satellite Navigation Competition
UK Winners 2008, European Winners ‘Galileo Masters’ 2008,
GSA ‘Most Promising GNSS Project’ 2008

The Problem and the Solution by Sci-tech

In cold water, a person fallen overboard from a vessel has a short life expectancy, ranging from 15 to 60 minutes. There is currently no system capable of exactly locating a drifting casualty and performing a relatively quick rescue. This is a recognised gap in the Marine Leisure and Commercial markets. Our project offers a solution that enables localised recovery by the remaining crew, so promoting quicker rescue time. By tracking in real time, and using the boat’s existing navigation equipment, it guides the crew directly back to the casualty. The system operates automatically and uses unaltered familiar equipment in daily use, important if crew are inexperienced or panicking. It can be used for any vessel fitted with simple or complex navigation equipment.

The best chance of survival is rescue by the boat from which the casualty has fallen.

• Real time position of POB
• Local rescue by own boat or other boats in vicinity
• Guidance to POB using existing familiar on-board equipment
• Automatic operation
• No false alarms to SAR

The Team comprises

Peter Hall, Christine Edwards, David Lewin, Roger Noble all at www.scitechsystems.co.uk

Will Bentall, London Associates (Product Design) www.la-design.co.uk

Contact point is;
Unit 11, Mildmay House, Foundry Lane,
Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex
CM0 8BL
Tel: 01621 857386
Mob: 07932 678136
Fax: 0870 7050959
Email: info@scitechsystems.co.uk
Web: www.scitechsystems.co.uk

ESA News Article

Could you picture yourself here in 2009, picking up the coveted title ‘EUROPEAN MASTER 2009’ and moving your conceptual design into a commercial product? If so then do not delay and submit your ideas into the competition

 The European SATNAV Competition is in partnership with the following Regions:

SUBMIT YOUR IDEAS BETWEEN 1 st May and 31 st July 2009 and turn your ideas into commercial success. Register now!!

For further details see below or contact Bill Collins by e-mail billc@hertsbic.co.uk or telephone 01438 310072.

UK Partners
and Sponsors