Non-Satellite Broadband Maritime Communications for e-Navigation Services

Abstract

The development of broadband network access technologies available to users on land has triggered a rapid expansion of a diverse range of services provided by terrestrial networks. However, due to limitations of digital communication technologies in the off-shore area, the maritime ICT systems evolution so far has not followed that trend. Despite the e-navigation initiative defining the set of Maritime Services, the progress in the maritime ICT systems evolution has been slow. Only a few systems, including the VHF Data Exchange System (VDES), or the TRI-Media Telematic Oceanographic Network (TRITON) have been proposed to extend the basic set of services offered by classical radio-communication solutions. However, all those systems have significant limitations. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the netBaltic system designed as a fully heterogeneous system for modern maritime communications. Its unique feature is the capability to transparently use different communication technologies to efficiently support maritime ICT services, as well as openness for the incorporation of future communication technologies. The paper presents an overview of VDES, TRITON and netBaltic systems and analysis showing their expected strengths and weaknesses. The systems are then compared in simulated environments, illustrating real-world usage scenarios based on real maritime traffic information and performance measurements obtained during off-shore measurement campaigns. Results indicate that netBaltic seems to be the most versatile one and is capable of offering access to all services defined by International Maritime Organization, due to its ability to use different communication technologies simultaneously and functionality offered by its Delay Tolerant Networking component.

A beginner's guide to infrastructure‐less networking concepts

“…An overview of the existing technologies for ship‐to‐ship communication and the related concepts is given in ref. [313].…”

Wireless Link Selection Methods for Maritime Communication Access Networks—A Deep Learning Approach

“…A practical example of a handover execution solution designed to operate in a heterogeneous, maritime wireless systems is proposed in [ 6 ], combining the Proxy Mobile IPv6 protocol and the soft handover approach [ 32 ].…”

“…Another solution aims to map the effect of wave motion on wireless communications while maintaining computational efficiency, by modelling the pitch motion as a sum of trigonometric functions with different periods [ 54 ]. This solution is of particular interest in our case, as it provides a good accuracy for systems using high-gain omnidirectional antennas with a narrow vertical beam of a few degrees, which are commonly used in practice [ 6 , 54 , 55 ].…”

“…To further complicate the situation, the access environment which we want to use for coastal maritime communication is a heterogeneous one. Recent and ongoing research indicates [ 5 , 6 , 78 , 79 , 80 ], that a heterogeneous approach would be able to meet the requirements of maritime communication in near future [ 81 ], by integrating various already available, well-tested wireless communication techniques [ 6 ]. An example of such a system is presented in [ 6 ] and utilizes node mobility management mechanisms and multi-hop mesh network—however its efficiency is still dependant on the correct operation of link selection algorithms.…”

“…Resulting solutions often employ two- or multi-hop communication between vessels at sea or between such vessels and onshore stations, and can be classed as self-organizing mesh networks. A number of pilot projects implementing such maritime communication solutions have been undertaken [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. Their activities either focus on theoretical approach to various aspects of communication (such as radio transmission or routing algorithms [ 4 , 9 ]), or take a practical approach, aiming to create solutions ready to be implemented in specific scenarios [ 4 , 10 , 11 , 12 ].…”