Wi-Fi On the Sea
If you do any marine business at all, you realize one modern problem of yacht owners is how to stay connected with the Internet. The tragic disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH-370 underlined for the public that there are still places on the high seas that are unreachable by what we think is our ubiquitous communications technology.
That’s where Zinwave Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) technology comes in. The company’s in-building wireless DAS also provides ubiquitous wireless coverage for super yachts, commercial vessels and cruise liners — and is already bring deployed by a number of ship building yards in the UK and Europe.
That’s right — Zinwave’s “in-building” wireless designed to solve connectivity issues inside the four walls of buildings is now on the horizon for many lovers of the open, fresh air of the high seas.
Most cruise liners, super yachts and commercial vessels have a limited onboard network infrastructure. Communication via satellite phone or laptop is no longer sufficient to meet passenger and crew demand for high speed access to voice and data services.
Reliable coverage is difficult to achieve because the metal structure of most maritime vessels blocks RF transmission, particularly on lower decks. In order to overcome these issues, not only do captains/boat owners require an onboard GSM network that supports international spectrums, they also need an effective means of amplifying RF signals to ensure optimal coverage in all areas.
Zinwave’s in-building active DAS is a solution because of its ability to do this cost effectively. Zinwave’s primary hub connects to the onboard base station or repeater, its secondary hub is used to distribute the required services (which can be changed depending on location or licensing agreements) and its remote antennas are discretely installed throughout the vessel to provide optimal coverage.
Zinwave’s wideband active DAS is frequency-agnostic and supports multiple services and frequencies between 150 MHz and 2700 MHz, regardless of modulation scheme or protocol. It is the only system globally, says the maker, that is capable of supporting commercial cellular services, public safety services, Wi-Fi services and private radio services, such as onboard walkie-talkie systems, on a single hardware layer.
It also eliminates the need for expensive infrastructure or hardware upgrades to accommodate new services, such as 4G LTE, as they become available, delivering the lowest total cost of ownership per installation and offering rapid ROI. With a portfolio of installations, Zinwave’s technology also serves other markets including hospitality, utilities, corporate enterprises, healthcare and public venues.
More information on the company’s marine applications is here.
This article originally appeared in rAVe Europe.