Vehicles and containers all need to be able to communicate so they can share and receive an increasing array of important data. This extends from comparatively simple use cases such as regular location updates so arrival times can be projected to more complex data such as confirmation that the cold chain for fresh produce has not been interrupted. The next step will be greater automation with degrees of autonomous vehicles already being deployed.
All of this relies on secure, low-latency, uninterrupted access to connectivity as objects move through the world. In many situations, cellular networks in the form of 4G and 5G are widely deployed to address the needs of vehicles and goods in transit as they move down highways or along rail routes to ports, distribution hubs and their ultimate destinations. However, cellular coverage remains incomplete with large blackspots on-land and only small, coastal parts of the oceans covered by the technology.
Cellular networks are ideal for the mobility of vehicles and devices across all forms of transport but they’re also notoriously prone to congestion and occasional failure or service interruptions. These can prevent or delay important communication in relation to transport and automotive use cases. In these scenarios, systems need to be able to failover to an alternative network and sometimes a fallback cellular network will also have been compromised.
A go-to technology
Satellite technology has become the go-to option for use cases that need this level of redundancy and also for those that routinely operate in areas of low or no cellular coverage. Satellite connectivity meets their needs because it can provide the low latency, high-capacity bandwidth that many modern vehicle and transportation use cases need. In addition, while satellite was previously out of reach for lower end use cases, it is now increasingly affordable for a wide range of use cases.
The reason for this is that while satellite providers have significantly increased their coverage footprints, they have also been able to reduce the cost of satellite connectivity. By adopting new satellite designs, optimised launch and operational models and achieving economies of scale, satellite providers are making the technology more widely addressable. Co-operation with cellular providers also means that combined cellular/satellite solutions are available to enable failover from cellular to satellite in the event of a cellular network issue and satellite communication in the areas of no coverage.
This is one of the reasons why significant growth – of 18.7% CAGR – is projected between now and 2024 when the market for satellite IoT in transport and logistics is projected to be worth US$1.347 billion by Grand View Research. Satellite uniquely addresses areas where there is no cellular coverage, including the Earth’s oceans, while also providing a robust, reliable fallback option for when cellular networks are not available to support transportation and automotive use cases. Check out how fleet managers are utilising satellite connectivity to harness the power of smart data:
The author is George Malim, the managing editor of IoT Now.
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