One of the world’s most advanced AIS 2.0 testbeds has been established at SIMAC – Svendborg International Maritime Academy in Southern Denmark as part of the ongoing project, MARS – Maritime Autonomous Reliable Systems: The demo vessel, Thurø, has been equipped with a combined VDES, MMS, and LTE setup from Sternula and Saab in line with the recommendations of the latest version of IALA G1117.
A mobile VDES coast station and control center have been installed in a van for easy deployment in different locations. And finally, access to the STERNULA-1 VDES satellite has been acquired for global connectivity.
Last week, a series of tests were successfully conducted and presented to DanPilot – Danish State Pilotage. In particular, we demonstrated the routing of text messages seamlessly over VDES and LTE using a smart MMS edge router (Sternula MMS Proxy). Our demo team for the day was Sebastian and Kamila.
The MARS testbed is planned to serve a number of trials over the coming years. If you have a maritime digital service that needs testing, reach out to MARS project leader, Charlotte Kirkegaard Flugt.
To read more about the ongoing project with SIMAC click here.
About AIS 2.0 (VDES):
- it is the new communication solution to implement the e-Navigation strategy
- AIS 2.0 is an extension to AIS, adding two-way data channels over VHF
- by using special satellite channels (up and down), every ship with a VHF antenna will be able to communicate globally
