Ka-band constellations are a future for maritime satcoms

Inmarsat has ordered satellites for its fifth and sixth generation constellations to expand its Fleet Xpress connectivity services to shipping

Inmarsat is investing in its existing and next generation of satellites constellations for maritime broadband in both Ka-band and L-band, with new units being built for 2019 and 2020 launch dates.

It has offered Fleet Xpress to shipping since 2016 for multiple online applications, operational communications and a variety of crew welfare services. It combines high bandwidth over Global Xpress Ka-band on the fifth generation constellation of satellites and L-band through FleetBroadband on the fourth generation network.

These services will be expanded over the next three years as Inmarsat anticipates it will commission new satellites for Global Xpress and FleetBroadband. In 2019, Inmarsat expects to launch a Thales Alenia Space-built satellite that will augment the existing Global Xpress services.

There are already four satellites in this constellation: three were commissioned in 2015-2016 and another was brought into service in Q4 2017. Boeing’s Network & Space Systems built that I-5 F4 satellite, which increases Ka-band capacity available to ships in Europe, the Middle East and India.

In 2017, Inmarsat ordered two satellites for a sixth-generation constellation from Airbus Defence & Space. These satellites will have a dual-payload as each will support L-band and Ka-band for expanding Fleet Xpress services. The Inmarsat-6 fleet will double the Ka-band capacity of the fifth generation constellation and have more L-band capabilities than all of Inmarsat’s existing fleet.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries was contracted in 2017 to launch those satellites from 2020 using its H-IIA launch vehicle. Once commissioned, they will supplement existing coverage for broadband and safety communications. They should enable shipping to apply internet-of-things technology on vessels and introduce new applications, such as real-time remote monitoring and video streaming.

Inmarsat Maritime vice president for safety and security Peter Broadhurst told Marine Electronics & Communications that Inmarsat-6 satellites will replace those in the ageing Inmarsat-3 constellations, which are scheduled to be taken out of service from 2020. The L-band payload will be required for FleetBroadband, back-up to VSAT and Fleet Xpress and growing demand for connectivity in smaller vessels that can use Inmarsat’s Fleet One service.

Inmarsat chief executive Rupert Pearce expects growing capacity on Fleet Xpress will enable shipping to catch up with other sectors in digitalisation and the adoption of the internet of things.

“Global maritime is undergoing a period of unprecedented change”

“Global maritime is undergoing a period of unprecedented change,” he said while opening an office in Ålesund, Norway, in November 2017. “The connected ship is a catalyst for change and an enabler of digital applications.”

He went on to say: “Fleet Xpress enables application-triggered bandwidth, which will be key to converting today’s smart and connected ship into tomorrow’s smart fleet.”

Smart ship applications

Ship operators and managers benefit from the connectivity of Fleet Xpress. They will be able to adopt more applications when the next generation of satellites is commissioned. Mr Pearce explained that there were numerous opportunities and applications that are enabled on a broadband-connected ship. “Digital business models can create inter-fleet, intra-fleet and new maritime-related communities,” he explained.

“We see ourselves now as enablers of digital outcomes for our end-users”

Other benefits will be derived from analysing the continuous flow of data transmitted between ships and shore, such as for monitoring engine performance and condition of associated systems on ships. Mr Pearce expects applications on ships, such as passage planning and weather routeing to achieve optimal sailing, to contribute to more profitable voyages.

“Bandwidth also plays a vital role in bridge procedures, whether for navigation and situational awareness or security of physical and cyber assets,” he said. “We see ourselves now as enablers of digital outcomes for our end-users.”

Inmarsat Maritime president Ronald Spithout thinks shipowners will achieve operating efficiencies, improve safety and cyber security and lower fuel consumption using applications that are enabled through Fleet Xpress. These will be delivered through network service devices that are a software component of network gateways that are already installed on ships using Fleet Xpress.

The connectivity comes through the use of 60 cm and 1 m antennas that Cobham Satcom, Intellian Technologies and Japan Radio Co have developed for Ka-band. These are linked to network service devices and iDirect modems within the below-deck equipment.

Mr Spithout said there is secondary bandwidth that application providers can buy and then offer services to vessels. He expects engine manufacturers to be among the first to purchase bandwidth and lease it back to the shipowner to enable remote engine monitoring, analytics and diagnostics.

Shipmanagers may also want to purchase secondary bandwidth to deliver their own services, such as training applications and cloud-based management solutions. Mr Spithout described this as “dynamic bandwidth” that vessel operators can use for short-term bursts in demand, for example for video conferences or telemedicine.

There is a waiting list of around 10,000 ships on Inmarsat’s XpressLink services of Ku-band VSAT and FleetBroadband that want to be upgraded to Fleet Xpress. Engineers worldwide are able to migrate about 250 of these to Fleet Xpress per month since Inmarsat increased the number of ports where installation services are available from six to 33 in 2017: 12 ports in Asia Pacific, 11 in Europe, the Middle-East and Africa and 10 ports in the Americas. The installation work will be carried out by Inmarsat-certified engineers for a fixed fee.

Fleet Xpress for OSVs

Initial uptake of Fleet Xpress is from commercial shipping and fishing vessel sectors, however, it can be applied to other maritime segments. In January this year, Inmarsat adapted it for offshore support vessels (OSVs) by offering flexibility in connectivity service levels. This was explained by Inmarsat vice president for sales in offshore energy Eric Griffin at Riviera Maritime Media’s Annual Offshore Support Journal Conference in London on 7 February.

He said Fleet Xpress needed to be flexible because the connectivity needs and data usage on board OSVs changes over time. Therefore, Inmarsat has enabled vessel owners to upgrade and downgrade service levels during a 36-month contract period. This is to match data usage when an OSV is on-hire, which can be far higher than when the vessel is undergoing downtime.

“Our flexibility means owners can move up or down one of 13 plans across the contract period to meet changes in demand,” said Mr Griffin. These plans can offer bandwidth of up to 6 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload through a 1 m diameter Ka-band antenna and Fleet Xpress. If a vessel owner wants to install an enhanced antenna, then these rates can climb to 10 Mbps for download and 5 Mbps for upload. This is in comparison to when an OSV is off-hire when data rates can drop to as low as 128 kbps each way to maintain core operational data exchanges.

Mr Griffin explained that applications can be operated over the higher bandwidth rates “providing competitive advantages” for owners. These can include telemedicine and entertainment content for crew welfare and bandwidth for client requirements.

“Offshore projects can generate considerable volumes of data that need transmitting to shore for analysis,” he explained. “Vessels operating on construction work have many more people on board and need more bandwidth.”

These OSV plans can be used in conjunction with new hardware from terminal manufacturers that will provide dual-antenna solutions. These minimise outages caused by line-of-sight blockages, which are a common occurrence for OSVs due to their proximity to drilling rigs and because they operate in high sea states.

“If there is a failure on one terminal then this automatically fails over to a second terminal”

“If there is a failure on one terminal then this automatically fails over to a second terminal,” said Mr Griffin. An antenna control unit will manage the service and seamlessly switch between antennas. Dual-antenna systems are available from Cobham Satcom and Intellian.

Cyber security

Connectivity reliability on all types of vessels can be also be compromised by cyber threats. To tackle these risks, Inmarsat introduced a new unified threat management (UTM) service in September 2017.

The product, called Fleet Secure, is being offered in conjunction with Fleet Xpress after 1.5 years of development by Inmarsat and strategic partner Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel). Fleet Secure UTM uses a suite of cyber security defences developed by Singtel’s cyber security subsidiary Trustwave, including advanced firewalls, antivirus, intrusion preventers and web filters.

This is a virtual machine that protects a vessel by inspecting all traffic flows through the onboard controller. All threat incidents are reported back to the portal so that the ship operator can be alerted to any cyber security breaches and take corrective action.

Inmarsat is offering three tiers for the subscription-based service. A gold membership includes real-time threat monitoring and analysis with immediate digital notifications of any threats and a follow-up telephone call in the case of severe security threats. Silver memberships offer a daily review and analysis of threats, while bronze status gives customers access to an online portal, where they can check their own status.

Inmarsat specifications

Service: Fleet Xpress

Waiting list: 10,000 vessels

I-4 constellation: 4 existing satellites (L-band)

I-5 constellation: 4 existing satellites (Ka-band)

New satellite: Thales Alenia Space-built I-5, 2019 launch

I-6 constellation: 2 satellites ordered from Airbus Defence & Space

Dual-payload: L-band and Ka-band for Fleet Xpress

Launch: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in 2020

Fleet Xpress for OSVs: 13 service packages up to 6 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload