Hardware unveiled for coastal and port vessel connectivity

KVH Industries has introduced hardware and software enabling vessels, tugboats and workboats to connect with onshore mobile phone networks that extend beyond the coastline and with wide area networks (WANs) in ports.

Its TracNet Coastal terminals include an antenna to connect with 5G, long-term evolution (LTE) and 4G networks, either as a standalone communications unit for workboats or as part of a hybrid system.

KVH’s TracNet Coastal Pro also enables switching with goestationary orbiting (GEO) and low Earth orbiting (LEO) satellite constellations and L-band back-up. And it has a below-deck wifi and Ethernet router for onboard networking and two slots for user-supplied SIM cards.

These terminals have KVH Fusion eSIM technology with connectivity in 135 countries and work alongside very small aperture terminal (VSAT) technology to communicate with GEO satellites and with antennas linked to Starlink, OneWeb and Iridium LEO constellations.

“The demand for faster, more reliable connectivity is growing for business and personal communications at sea, including the expectation of a home streaming experience on board,” said KVH senior vice president of sales and global support, Chad Impey. 

“TracNet Coastal delivers cellular speeds as fast as 300 Mbps down and data costs as low as $1 per gigabyte," he said. "In addition, TracNet Coastal’s high-gain wifi bridge in the antenna enables vessels to benefit from the speed and often free wifi in port or the marina."

TracNet Coastal could be an upgrade or back-up to current onboard LEO solutions and a standalone alternative.

“With this Fusion eSIM technology, TracNet Coastal can automatically provide an array of cellular services and intelligently switch among them based on geographic location or other parameters, delivering a maintenance-free and seamless global cellular service,” said KVH senior director for engineering James Tavares.