[SatNews] KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq: KVHI) has introduced an upgraded line of TracPhone onboard terminals for its mini-VSAT Broadband service at the Nor-Shipping international maritime show in Oslo, Norway. The TracPhone V3-IP, TracPhone V7-IP, and TracPhone V11-IP all feature KVH’s new Integrated CommBox Modem (ICM), which combines all of the necessary belowdecks equipment of a maritime VSAT/network management system—antenna control unit, CommBox Ship/Shore Network Manager, ArcLight spread spectrum modem, VoIP, Ethernet switch, and Wi-Fi capabilities—into a single 2U enclosure. In addition to simplifying installation, the new ICM offers powerful network management tools for maritime IT managers and can receive multicast content such as charts, weather forecasts, news, sports, music, and movies from KVH’s new IP-MobileCast content delivery service, which was also introduced today and is expected to be available later this year.
The TracPhone V3-IP is the world’s smallest maritime VSAT terminal, featuring an antenna that is only 37cm (14.5-inch) in diameter, with ship-to-shore speeds of 128Kbps and shore-to-ship speeds of 2Mbps. The TracPhone V7-IP is an enterprise-grade solution featuring an antenna that is approximately 60cm (24-inch) in diameter, with ship-to-shore speeds of 1Mbps and shore-to-ship speeds of 2Mbps. Both the TracPhone V3-IP and the TracPhone V7-IP operate in the Ku-band coverage area of KVH’s mini-VSAT Broadband network, which is among the broadest in the maritime industry.
KVH’s new dual-mode TracPhone V11-IP uses mini-VSAT Broadband’s Ku-band coverage as well as the network’s global C-band coverage with ship-to-shore speeds of 1Mbps and shore-to-ship speeds of 4Mbps. It is the only maritime VSAT product with a 1m antenna that provides coverage matching global L-band services using geostationary satellites.
The ICM controls the one-to-one connectivity of the mini-VSAT Broadband service, including the fast, low latency data connections and the exceptionally high-quality VoIP service. It also provides onboard network management functionality that includes such services as e-mail management, transmission optimization, assured file delivery, the ability to set up separate networks for operations and crew, and the ability to manage crew use of the system with Internet café and crew calling cards. The ICM is also a key part of KVH’s strategy to add content delivery services to the mini-VSAT Broadband network, with its anticipated ability to receive, decode, and distribute multicast data including electronic charts, weather forecasts, training materials, newspapers, news and sports clips, music, and movies that KVH plans to distribute using its new IP-MobileCast service.
Additionally, KVH Industries, Inc. plans to offer automatic position reports to support its customers who subscribe to the popular Jeppesen OpenENC “Pay-As-You-Sail” (PAYS) electronic chart service. OpenENC PAYS provides subscribers with access to the entire Jeppesen Electronic Navigation Chart (ENC) database, allowing them to pay only for the charts they actually use based on position reports made periodically to Jeppesen. KVH’s new TracPhone V-IP series terminals all feature internal GPS systems, which enable accurate position tracking for Jeppesen without needing to interface with the vessel’s navigation system, thus providing an affordable PAYS solution for mutual KVH and Jeppesen customers.