WELCOME TO OUR PRESENTATION

Group Members: Nguyen Minh Hieu

Hoang Minh Duc
Nguyen Hoang Giang
Phan Dang Tuan
Kim Beyong Hee
INMARSAT C
1: Introduction
 Inmarsat-C is a two-way, packet data service operated
by the telecommunications company Inmarsat which
operates between ship earth stations (SES) and land earth
stations (LES). It became fully operational in 1993 after a
period of pre-operational trials in January 1991. The
advantages of Inmarsat-C compared to Inmarsat-A are low
cost, smaller and uses a smaller omni-directional antenna.
The disadvantage is that voice communication is not
possible with Inmarsat-C. The service is approved for use
under the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System
(GMDSS), meets the requirements for Ship Security Alert
Systems (SSAS) defined by the International Maritime
Organization (IMO).
 According to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at
Sea, SOLAS 74/88, cargo ships, passenger ships, oil tankers,
container ships, marine structures such as drilling rigs, exploration
rigs operating in A3 area are required to be equipped with
Inmarsat C.
 The service works with a store-and-forward method which enables
interface with data network transfer including; e-mail; SMS; telex;
remote monitoring; tracking (position reporting); chart and
weather updates; maritime safety information (MSI); maritime
security; GMDSS; and SafetyNET and FleetNET services; two-way
messaging; data reporting and polling; Safety/Emergency alerting.
 Data transfers between SES and LES at a rate of 600 bits/second.
The frequencies for transmitting (TX) are 1626.5MHz -1645.5MHz
and for receiving (RX) are 1530.0MHz - 1545.0MHz.
2: Components
 The standard Inmarsat C device on board consists of
an Inmarsat terminal (this is the transmitter
and receiver), a message terminal with disc drive and
keyboard or another computer system, a printer, a power
supply, an omni-directional antenna, an antenna cable
and, if not built-in, a GPS receiver.
 The Inmarsat C device can be used for sending and
receiving messages. These messages consist of data
which is generated or decoded by the message terminal
or computer connected to the Inmarsat C terminal. So it
offers the possibility of sending and receiving various
types of messages such as E-mail, Fax, TELEX, SMS etc.
3: Inmarsat C coverage
 Inmarsat C is a two-way store and forward communication
system that transmits messages in data packets in ship-to-
shore, shore-to-ship and ship-to-ship direction in A3 sea
area.
 The headquarters for Inmarsat C is located in London. The
four Ocean Regions that are covered by Inmarsat C are:
1. the Atlantic Ocean Region East (AOR-E)
2. Atlantic Ocean Region West (AOR-W)
3. Pacific Ocean Region (POR)
4. Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
4: Maritime Rescue Coordination Centers
 Within each ocean region, there are approximately four or five
Maritime Rescue Coordination Centers (MRCC). In total, there are
over twenty MRCC's in the world, and each MRCC station contributes
to a certain MRCC area. The MRCC stations are located in:
1. Wellington (New Zealand)-POR
2. Aussaguel (France)-IOR/AOR-E/AOR-W
3. Beijing (China)-IOR/POR
4. Burum (The Netherlands)-AOR-E/AOR-W/IOR
5. Elk (Norway)-AOR-E/AOR-W/IOR
6. Emeq Haela (Israel)-AOR-E/IOR
7. Fucino (Italy) AOR-E/IOR
8. Ex Goonhilly @ Burum (Netherlands)
9. Hai Phong (Vietnam)-IOR
10. Kumsan (S. Korea) IOR/POR
11. Lakhadaria (Algeria) AOR-E
12. Nakhodka (Russia)-POR
13. Nudol (Russian Fed.)-AOR-E/IOR
14. Perth (Australia)-IOR/POR
15. Psary (Poland)-AOR-E/IOR
16. Pune (India)-IOR
17. Santa Paula (USA)-POR
18. Sentosa (Singapore)-IOR/POR
19. Southbury (USA)-AOR-E/AOR-W
20. Tangua (Brazil)-AOR-E
21. Thermopylae (Greece)-AOR-E
22. Yamaguchi (Japan)-IOR/POR.
5: Safety features of Inmarsat C
 Distress alerting – a mandatory service on SOLAS-compliant
maritime Inmarsat C terminals. Distress alerts are issued when a
ship or crew is in a grave and imminent danger. When there is no
time to input information manually into the terminal, the crew can
simply press and hold down the Dedicated Distress Button for
approximately five seconds to transmit the alert.
 Enhanced Group Calls (ECG) – the broadcasting of Maritime
Safety Information and Search and Rescue related information
messages over Inmarsat C terminals,
through SafetyNET, RescueNET and FleetNET services.
 Data reporting and polling -short data reports, up to four data
packets, that are sent to shore-based authorities or operational
centres, such as Long Range Identification and Tracking (LRIT) of
ships, as required by the IMO. Data reports consist of information
such as a vessel’s position report, sailing plan, or fisheries catch
report – in fact any data that can be encoded into data packets
and sent from ships regularly, randomly or in response to a polling
command from a shore-based operational centre
6: Inmarsat C operation and comunication
 Starting the terminal and Log in: When you switch on the
equipment, all components will be checked automatically and
the terminal starts to ' log in' on the default Ocean Region. 'Log
In' means, the terminal transmits via the satellite to the NCS.
This transmission contains a message reporting the terminal is
switched on and will be available via the satellite used . When
the default satellite is not in sight, the terminal will start to scan
for the strongest receiving satellite signal to “Log in. After the
'log in' process the terminal will confirm that the log in procedure
has been completed successfully.  If “Log in” has failed, the
relevant ocean region must be inserted. Before switching off
the Inmarsat C terminal you will need to 'log out'. Your terminal
will transmit a message to the NCS telling it will be not available
from that time.
 Commissioning: Before you can use the Inmarsat terminal it should
be commissioned. This means, the user has to fill in a
commissioning form. On this form will be written down all the details
of the user, of the ship and of the equipment. Normally the 'national
authority' will give the Inmarsat number at the time you get your
ship station licence for the use of this equipment. The Inmarsat C
number is an identification number of the terminal consisting of 9
numbers starting with the 4. Within the Inmarsat system the kind
of Inmarsat terminal can be recognized by the first number used. An
example of an Inmarsat C number is 457404310, where number 4 is
the recognized number for Inmarsat C, 574 is MID (maritime
identification digit) which is the recognized State number (in this
example, 574 is Vietnam), and the last five numbers are numbers
assigned to the GMDSS station. The first time the terminal logs on, a
commissioning test will be performed. After this test the terminal
can be used in the Inmarsat system.
 We can find the state number in Coast Station Identities.
 Position update: Normally the terminal will be connected to an
external GPS, and sometimes a GPS is built into the Inmarsat C transceiver.
It is vital to have an accurate position because the position in the terminal
will be used when sending a distress alert. The position will also be used by
the Inmarsat C terminal for the selection of received MSI messages. When
there is a failure in the automatic position update you should enter the
position manually. This manual position update should be done at least
once every four hours.
 Calculation of costs: The cost incurred by sending an Inmarsat C
message will be calculated on the total number of bytes transmitted. The
value of the calculation unit to be used for cost calculation is determined
by LES. The charges are calculated by counting the number of packets of
256 bits that has been transmitted (per quarter of a kilo byte). E.g. the
message containing 0,75 KBit. The cost is 0,21 $/256 bits. So, the cost of
the message will be 3 x 0,21 = $ 0,63. The reception of messages is free of
charge.
When someone tries to send a message to a 'logged out' terminal, the
system will tell the sender the terminal is not available and no costs will be
charged.
 The Inmarsat C system is capable of transmitting
different types of messages. It can be used for the
transmission of:
1. TELEX.
2. Fax.
3. Data,
4. E-mail and also
5. SMS messages (Short Message Service).
 The type of messages and how (the format of) these
messages should be transmitted depends on the
protocol which has been used by the provider of
the LES.
 Communication via an Inmarsat C terminal will always involve a
transfer of data. This data transfer will always be "store and forward".
This means there will never be a direct connection between
the Inmarsat C terminal and the final destination, and for this reason it
is not possible to make a telephone call via this Inmarsat C system.
 Normally the terminal will send his message to the choosen LES on
via the NCS-directed channel. The complete message will be stored in
a computer in the LES. The message will be given a reference number
by the LES. After the transmission of this message, the LES will
forward the stored message to the appointed address. When the
message has been delivered, the LES will give the sender a Positive
Delivery Notification (PDN), when the sender has asked for this
service. This PDN will be charged by the LES. When a message cannot
be delivered to the appointed address, the sender will get a Non
Delivery Notification (NDN). In this NDN will be a code (see fault codes
in the appendix) that explains why the delivery has failed. Normally
the NDN is free of charge, but this depends on the policy of
the LES being used .
 In the Inmarsat system you can use the Two Digit service
codes to obtain some special services directly via the
selected LES. E.g. when you wish to obtain radio medical
advice you should enter service code 32, and then the
selected LES will forward your message directly to a
doctor or hospital. This list containing the Two Digit
service codes can be found in the table of 2-digit Code
Telephone Services.
7: Conclusion
 Along with the development of science and technology
and maritime industry, the new generation of equipment
was born to meet the increasing requirements of
seafarers and management systems such as: Inmarsat
Fleet 77 and the latest Fleet Broadband. But with its
special role, Inmarsat-C is required to equip aboard ships
under the international convention on safety of life at sea
SOLAS 74/88. Inmarsat-C has been contributing
significantly to ensuring traffic safety at sea, an important
communication device in emergencies and rescue
situations.