Bridging the gap between railway safety and the specification of satellite based localisation systems

In the future all vehicles in public transport will be equipped with tracking systems that use positioning information provided by satellites in order to make efficient use of the infrastructure and to meet the increased quality standards in public transport. The specification of the future standard of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) is a task which can only be solved by a tremendous collaborative and communicative effort of experts from all modes of transportation. Effective communication in the specification process calls for mutual understanding and a terminology well-suited for multidisciplinary discourse. This paper introduces a methodical framework for the disambiguation and harmonization of the terminology currently used in the specification phase. The method outlined in this paper will be exemplified with terms currently used in the draft specification. Using this methodical framework the currently existing problems of ambiguity, terminological vagueness, inconsistency as well as domain-specificity can be overcome.