Mesh Network News

There is little question that world militaries see the value of unmanned systems to complement their manned counterparts. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan accelerated the development of unmanned aerial systems and unmanned ground systems to meet urgent operational needs. Now, there is increasing interest in unmanned surface systems, resulting in their placement on an accelerated development path.Like their air and ground counterparts, these unmanned surface systems are valued because of their ability to reduce the risk to human life in high threat areas…

There is little question that world militaries see the value of unmanned systems to complement their manned counterparts. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan accelerated the development of unmanned aerial systems and unmanned ground systems to meet urgent operational needs. Now, there is increasing interest in unmanned surface systems, resulting in their placement on an accelerated development path.Like their air and ground counterparts, these unmanned surface systems are valued because of their ability to reduce the risk to human life in high threat areas…

J.J. Ugland awarded a contract to ScanReach to deliver its ConnectFuel solution to optimize fuel consumption and reporting for J.J. Ugland's fleet.Onboard Wireless Connectivity (OWC) is the platform for real-time data collection, analytics and reporting to onboard and onshore users. OWC is unique in the ability to quickly install the wireless mesh network, as it consists of wireless mesh network nodes that can be mounted onto bulkheads by crew or installers, an onboard server to host the data and applications, and a Cloud endpoint.

Manama, Bahrain -- Advancing maritime domain awareness in the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. Fifth Fleet area of responsibility (AOR) is a challenging task. Yet keeping the sea lanes open is critical for the region, for the U.S. and the world.U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), U.S. Fifth Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) are all headquartered here in Bahrain, under the command of Vice Admiral Brad Cooper. U.S. Fifth Fleet oversees the operations for all U.S. naval forces in the Middle East.

Data usage on commercial maritime vessels has jumped more than threefold since 2019, according to new communications analysis by maritime comms specialist Inmarsat.Inmarsat said the study results underline the shipping industry’s reliance on digital connectivity to enhance operating efficiency and safeguard crew welfare during a period of unprecedented disruption to seaborne trade.The internal study undertaken by Inmarsat, which says it connects more vessels than any other provider…

Inmarsat ORCHESTRA, the future network for global mobility and government communications, achieved its first milestone in space today with the successful activation of a low earth orbit (Inmarsat ORCHESTRA) satellite payload.The LEO satellite is testing new concepts and system configurations for ORCHESTRA’s proposed LEO constellation, which will seamlessly integrate with geosynchronous orbit (GEO) and highly elliptical orbit (HEO) satellites, and a terrestrial 5G network, to deliver…

Maritime and offshore mobile satellite communications specialist Inmarsat has installed a new connectivity solution on SEA-KIT's uncrewed surface vessel (USV) Maxlimer using virtualized networks that the company says will establish higher standards for over-the-horizon uncrewed vessel control.The installation connects the USV Maxlimer to the best available network at all times by switching as necessary between Fleet LTE, Global Xpress (GX) and FleetBroadband satellite services when out of range…

Inmarsat, the mobile satellite communications provider, has extended its Fleet Xpress service agreement with offshore vessel owner Maersk Supply Service. The extension includes fleet-wide IoT-based ship management connectivity on separate, dedicated bandwidths. The extension has also enabled Maersk Supply Service to evaluate new vessel performance tools for selection, available through Inmarsat’s Certified Application Provider (CAP) program.Operating off Europe, the Americas, West Africa…

Global maritime communications powerhouse Inmarsat earlier this year announced a pair of new tech offerings – ORCHESTRA and ELERA – that are touted as ‘the communications network of the future.’ We caught up with Ronald Spithout, President, Inmarsat Maritime, for additional insights on how these services will power the future of maritime IoT.As digitalization and IoT continues to drive innovation across the maritime sector, satellite communication will serve as the conduit, and smaller, faster and cheaper is the mantra.

As the demand for goods continues to rise, the need to move a higher number of containers quicker and more efficiently is also increasing with this. As a result, port operators are proactively seeking new ways to boost productivity, all while reducing costs to meet this demand.The emergence of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is a significant factor in convincing ports to adopt new technologies to help them overcome the day-to-day complexities they face and not miss a beat in a fast-paced industry.

British multinational defence technology company Qinetiq collaborates with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) to investigate how drone technology can strengthen their Search and Rescue (SAR) missions.Small unmanned air systems are delivering disruptive change across the industry. Ten years ago what was predominantly a niche hobby, or military technology, has now found wide commercial success. Anyone can easily have an eye in the sky and recent publicity is changing the way organisations view their problems.The Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA) oversees search and rescue operations in the UK. Their volunteer Coastguard Rescue Teams respond to time-critical calls and work tirelessly to save lives.Funded by QinetiQ’s Internal Research and Development…

No two oil spill response operations are the same. Each can present new and even tougher challenges for spill responders as they detect, contain and recover spilled oil. Diverse aspects affecting oil spill response operations can be the physical environment, spill monitoring, use of chemical dispersants, and the availability of proper technology for the situation.Some challenges have been met through research and technology development of techniques for dealing with spills. However…

While debates rage in regards to safety, insurance and cyber security, the tech powering autonomous maritime operations continues to power ahead.Advances in sensor technology, data analytics and bandwidth-to-shore are fundamentally changing the way shipping works. And as operations are digitalized, they become more automated, Dr. Pierre C. Sames, Director of Group Technology & Research at class society DNV GL, has stated.Governments around the world are looking into unmanned shipping…

SignalFire Wireless Telemetry now offers a Modbus DIN Mount Gateway that combines a high power SignalFire radio with gateway electronics in a compact DIN mounted module with external SMA antenna connections for installation flexibility in remote monitoring applications. SignalFire’s Remote Sensing Systems consist of a gateway and nodes that connect to remote assets and extract data from or send control data to those devices through other nodes and/or the gateway. The SignalFire Gateway serves as a two-way interface, connecting asset managers to a remote mesh network of assets using industry-standard Modbus protocol. All sensor data is stored in Modbus format.

SignalFire Wireless Telemetery has added new tools and capabilities to its Field Setup and Diagnostic ToolKit that optimize the user-friendliness and customer productivity of its range of Remote Sensing Systems. Interfacing with sensors, thermocouples, load cells, pots and even turbine meters, the Signal Fire Wireless Remote Sensing Systems (SFRSS) support long-distance, wireless communications across devices in challenging, large scale environments such as oil fields. The Field Setup and Diagnostic Toolkit offers different PC applications for customizable configuration and diagnostics for all SignalFire hardware. Gateway Logging- Working in conjunction with network mapping, this powerful diagnostic tool permits users to monitor the health and performance of their wireless network.

CargoSphere,  cloud-based global rate management solution and confidential Rate Mesh network for the ocean and air transportation and logistics industries, has announced the completion of Blu Logistics’ integration with CargoSphere’s freight rate management solution. Blu Logistics, a global logistics company offering sea and air freight services, customs brokerage, ground transportation, and warehousing, previously outsourced freight rate and contract management. By changing over to a self-managed system Blu Logistics has significantly reduced the cost of managing this business process area.

The 8 million annual passengers that travel the New York Harbor on NY Waterway ferries now do so more safely with a system that includes hundreds of Interlogix IP and analog cameras, transmitting from moving ferries to a land-based security command center via a fast-roaming wireless mesh network based on multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) by Fluidmesh Networks. NY Waterway is the nation’s largest privately owned commuter ferry company, transporting 30,000 riders a day between 22 landings and terminals along a 100-mile corridor in the Hudson and East rivers and upper New York Harbor.

Smart Upload and Diagnostic Solution (SUDS) automates carrier contract and amendment management and processing with smart, diagnostic mapping intelligence for a faster, streamlined workflow. CargoSphere, cloud-based global rate management solution and confidential rate mesh network for the ocean and air transportation and logistics industries, introduced SUDS (Smart Upload and Diagnostics Solution), intelligent technology that reads external rate data directly from any carrier contract format and loads it into a rate system database. SUDS quickly and effectively automates the time-consuming and tedious task of managing and processing carrier contracts and numerous contract amendments. SUDS is a major advancement in the processing of large volumes of external freight rates.

In Finland and Sweden, a large percentage of commercial trade is transported by sea. During the winter months, this presents something of a challenge, as most of the trade routes are almost completely frozen over. Through a joint cooperation, the Swedish and Finnish Maritime Administrations enlist a fleet of icebreakers — nine vessels that travel the frozen waters to clear the ice and allow commercial ships to pass through. Thanks to these icebreakers, ports in both countries can remain open year-round. Communications is key to ensure that the icebreakers do their job, as they must be able to communicate to access up-to-the-minute information on weather forecasts and ice conditions…