To date, communications on-the-move (COTM) technology has provided reliable satellite communications for a variety of standard military and government vehicles in some of the world’s most demanding and hostile environments. While COTM represents a significant advancement for satellite communications, the size of the equipment has limited it to larger vehicle applications — until now.
iDirect Government Technologies (iGT) has recently launched a new small form-factor DVB-S2 satellite router board to power a new standard of high portability, low profile mobile applications. At half the size of current product standards, the iConnex e850mp packs iGT’s full suite of mobility and advanced platform features into a compact, portable board for systems integrators.
Emerging Applications
The e850mp is designed to integrate into a portable VSAT solution that can easily be transported by a single person or mobile vehicle. That makes it ideal for Comms on the Move, emergency response, and command and control applications in the field.
When combined with a bidirectional satellite antenna, the e850mp extends high-speed connectivity to a wide range of small form-factor portable and mobile solutions. This has led to the development of some exciting and innovative new applications, including:
- Personal mobile broadband: Individual soldiers utilize compact satellite communications systems to expand battlefield awareness, identify potential threats, transmit situational video back to base, receive command and control information, and enable telemedicin
- Expanded aerial applications: One of the latest applications for Comms on the Move technology is equipping medium- and small-size aircraft, cargo planes and Uninhabited Aircraft Systems (UASs) where space constraints demand smaller communications equipment.
- Deeper maritime coverage: Satellite communications has emerged in the maritime industry to support shipboard applications for deep water fleets, manned and unmanned submersible vehicles, and Coast Guard shallow water fleets.
- First Response: Fire and forestry units benefit from greater portability to deploy mobile command centers on the front lines of a spreading wildfire in dangerous zones where vehicles can only get so close.
Key Product Features
The iConnex e850mp is engineered to meet the most rigorous demands for mobility, security and flexibility from military and government organizations. Key features of the e850mp include:
- Compact and lightweight size: The e850mp measures only 10.35 in x 6.675 in x 1.24 in, weighing in at a mere 2 lbs.
- Two-way satellite IP routing: The e850mp features high carrier data rates: up to 156 Mbps outbound and 6.5 Mbps on the inbound, as well as a choice between iNFINITI TDM or DVB-S2/ACM on the outbound, providing even more flexibility for network design and bandwidth optimization.
- Spread spectrum waveform technology: The e850mp features iGT’s proprietary Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum technology, enabling use of ultra-small mobile antennae on aircraft, ships and land-based vehicles.
- Military-grade Security: The e850mp was engineered to be compliant with the highest military security specifications, including AES encryption, TRANSEC, FIPS 140-2, and X.509 digital certificate encryption and automatic over-the-air key exchange.
- Advanced Quality of Service (QoS) and traffic prioritization: With iGT’s state-of-the-art Group QoS, network operators can prioritize mission critical traffic and applications over their networks, ensuring the highest quality transmissions where needed.
- Global network support: The e850mp is fully enabled for iGT’s Global Network Management System (GNMS) and automatic beam switching technology allowing for a seamless network with truly global coverage while on the move.
- Intuitive network management: Service providers can easily configure and centrally manage each individual unit though the iVantage network management system, a complete suite of software-based tools for configuring, monitoring and controlling networks from one location.
From front lines of the battlefields to disaster scenes closer to home, the iDirect Government Technologies iConnex e850mp is bringing new applications for mobility to military and government organizations around the world.