For many owners and charterers, a superyacht is a treasured place to relax in privacy. The trouble, of course, is that these yachts can sometimes be tempting flyby targets for unmanned aerial vehicles at the hands of recreational operators or paparazzi.

The good news? Countermeasures exist.

Marss Group’s NiDAR CUAS Compact system (NiDAR Core is the company’s software-based AI platform, while CUAS means counter unmanned aerial systems) can detect and thwart up to 1,000 drones. The customizable system uses artificial intelligence and sensors for drone detection and optional electronic countermeasures, with the software-driven setup being updated monthly to keep owners ahead of the UAV technology curve.

To understand this technology, consider that consumer-level UAVs rely on two sets of radio-frequency communications. The first set includes flight-path commands that are relayed to the UAV from the human-operated controller via telemetry and the (ballpark) 2.4-gigahertz frequency band. The second set transmits the UAV’s video imagery back to its operator at about 5.8 GHz. While modern drones use frequency-hopping schemes to help ensure connectivity in RF-rich environments like cities, most UAVs are programmed to return to their operator if their RF stream is interrupted.

Sharp readers just spied an Achilles’ heel. Where there are communications, it’s also possible to jam them.

The NiDAR CUAS Compact (from around $250,000) has networked sensors and smart software that’s bundled inside a mast-mounted radome, plus a belowdecks black box that networks with the superyacht’s navigation system. Customers can spec a range of sensors (and countermeasures), and the system can sometimes use the yacht’s existing networked instrumentation.

“It’s a multilayered approach,” says Johannes Pinl, CEO and founder of the Marss Group. “There’s not one solution that fits all.”

The updatable NiDAR Core acts as the system’s centralized brain by drawing on different sensors—such as daylight and thermal- imaging cameras, Doppler-enabled radars and RF-detection sensors—to detect and identify multiple targets before alerting a human operator with a suggested response. Pinl says the omnidirectional RF-detection sensors can spot a microsize drone at 6-plus miles, sometimes with its precise location, altitude and speed. The system’s radar is composed of four high-definition solid-state radar panels on the radome’s lower pedestal, delivering 360-degree coverage. This radar can spot a recreational-level UAV at almost 1 mile out, and its Doppler post-processing provides flight-pattern information that can help the system differentiate UAVs from seabirds.

Most systems employ two cameras: one daylight/low-light camera with a 14x continuous optical zoom and one thermal-imaging camera with a 30x continuous optical zoom. These are housed in a radome that can pan through 360 degrees and tilt through minus 45 degrees to plus 90 degrees. These cameras also help identify potential threats, with live video feeds of the target(s) on networked displays or tablets.

NiDAR Core also uses the video feed to perform AI-driven image classification for fixed-wing drones, quadcopters, seagulls and such. For example, Marss trained NiDAR Core to know that birds flap their wings roughly once every three seconds. If wing motion isn’t detected, the absence can escalate a detection situation.

While the NiDAR CUAS Compact system can automatically identify, track and defeat UAVs, it is built with a human-on-the-loop scheme where input from a person is required to initiate countermeasures. This setup also creates what Marss calls “hybrid” intelligence between the system’s AI and its human operator.

System- and vessel-depending, these countermeasures often start off analog before going digital. For example, crewmembers can alert the yacht’s helicopter about a potential hazard or advise anyone enjoying the yacht’s sun decks of the situation, and suggest that they relocate.

Should the drones linger, the next step sometimes involves jamming the drones’ Achilles’ heels and sending them home. While effective, this step can include legal concerns.

“Jammers are not allowed to be used in all jurisdictions,” Pinl says, adding, “They are allowed to be owned in most of the jurisdictions and, in general, are allowed to be used in international water.”

Most recreational drones share these RF vulnerabilities; however, savvy operators sometimes program their UAVs to fly pre-scripted routes, and they set the drone’s camera to record its video imagery locally. These actions close the door on telemetric countermeasures.

The fine print on jamming is that these devices are often legal to own, but they can be illegal to use. As a result, such countermeasures are typically reserved for installations that protect heads of state (see sidebar). Marss does offer GPS jammers on some high-end military-facing systems, and customers can also sometimes buy this technology from third-party vendors.

So, if you aren’t interested in providing headline fodder for the paparazzi, investing in a Marss NiDAR CUAS Compact system could be wise. Timing, of course, matters, and Pinl advises against waiting until a crewmember discovers a UAV with flat batteries perched on the helipad (a true story).

Physical Countermeasures

While electromagnetic pulses and lasers are years away, Marss’ AI-guided Interceptor is a counter-UAV system that’s designed to protect heads of state, ships and military installations. Each Interceptor can fly at almost 180 mph to autonomously defeat multiple small and medium-size UAVs at ranges over 3 miles using battering-ram tactics.

The post MARSS’ NiDAR CUAS Compact System Ensures Privacy appeared first on Yachting.

GOST, which makes security and monitoring systems, says its Universal Control Unit can be used with the GOST Apparition IDP and NT Evolution IDP to be fully compatible for hardwired inputs for up to 192 zones.

The Universal Control Unit has traditionally been known for its wireless sensor capabilities, but it also can be used to hardwire GOST systems.

“While our UL-listed wireless transmitters are a great solution for many clients, we have many boatbuilders and after-market refit installations that can make full use of hardwired sensors such as door and hatch sensors, and float switches, to name a few,” Brian Kane, chief technology officer at GOST, stated in a press release. “Hardwiring a system is always a preferred option to reduce operator battery maintenance. It also lends itself nicely to the refit market with contact sensors, and wire runs are already installed.”

The UCU comes with a 4G LTE GSM Module for communications such as alerts, and arm and disarm functions. Local arming can be done via key fob, or optional 5- or 7-inch touchscreen keypads. Additionally, the UCU can work with any existing onboard internet via a third-party CAT5 ethernet plug.

The UCU can communicate with up to 32 wireless sensors, five relays and 32 users/key fobs. The system includes wireless, completely independent door/hatch contacts, infrared beam sensors, deck pressure sensors, high water sensors, DC battery low voltage, AC shore power loss and smoke detectors. It can also have wireless relay outputs for control of light switches, additional sirens, and more.

What if a boater needs to monitor more zones? The Universal Control Unit’s com bus can be interfaced to an eight-zone hardwired expansion and have multiple expansion modules.

Take the next step: go to gost.com

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I bought my last used car in 2001. I was 24 and enjoying a few (ahem) hard-earned years of post-college adventuring, and I was seeking a reliable mileage-maker. I found a 1998 Nissan Altima with clean papers, but I still brought it to my mechanic. Smart move: He showed me evidence of a serious prior accident and questionable maintenance.

So, I instead drove away in a just-off-lease 1996 Honda Accord. It wasn’t flashy or fun, but it delivered 100,000 trouble-free miles.

Now, flip this script and imagine that the asset involved is a new or brokerage-market yacht. Wouldn’t you like more insight into the vessel’s entire history?

Radian IoT Inc. provides information about a boat’s real-time location, inventory list and maintenance schedule, and how, when and where the boat has been or is being used. Yes, customers can use Radian’s device to power on or off compatible onboard devices and systems, but the device can also generate cloud-based geofences and huge amounts of vessel data.

Radian’s cellular-enabled M2 is a stand-alone IP67-rated black-box hub for sensors and communications. The M2 has an embedded three-axis accelerometer, a thermometer and battery-voltage sensors, and can connect to two hard-wired external sensors and pair with 24 Bluetooth-enabled devices. Additionally, the M2 has a built-in date-and-time clock, a 56-channel GNSS receiver, embedded memory that’s unaffected by power cycling, a five-year internal lithium battery (plus the ability to run off 12-volt power underway), NMEA 2000 and J1939 compliancy, and the ability to tackle over-the-air updates and configurations. Customers can also purchase external sensors for things like bilge pumps and water levels, and connect the sensors via hard-wiring.

Each M2 also has a 4G LTE Cat 1 cellular modem that can simultaneously run off three separate carrier networks and that is backward-compatible with 3G networks for use in 130 countries. The M2 reports its data at variable rates when connectivity exists; if the yacht exits coverage, the system briefcases its reports and cloud-loads them when connected.

Once data reaches Radian’s Amazon Web Services-based cloud, Radian’s in-house data scientists and AWS’ artificial intelligence sift through the ones and zeros for what Joe Czarnecky, Radian’s CEO, terms “the nuggets.” Depending on how the system is configured, and when and how it’s being used, this data can be made available to the vessel’s manufacturer, financiers, dealers, OEMs, customers and service providers.

“This is a data business,” Czarnecky says. “We have to have a great piece of hardware, but we’re really a data company, supplying data for that consumer all the way back to the dealer and manufacturer.”

Radian M2 boxes ($225 to $350, depending on their sensor payload) can be installed at the factory, or by a dealer or owner. Radian is currently supplying M2 boxes as OEM equipment to about a dozen boat manufacturers. So far, the system has been installed on thousands of new and brokerage yachts.

Scott Crutchfield, Radian’s president and founder, likens M2 boxes to SiriusXM satellite-radio receivers—standard equipment that requires a third-party subscription. In Radian’s case, airtime costs $9 per month. Once deals close, owners elect how much information they share via a series of opt-in and opt-out choices.

“We’re proud of this part,” Czarnecky says, because customers don’t “feel like their privacy is being jeopardized.” Customers can, for example, share their vessel’s health data with their dealership but decline to divulge information about their helm-time habits.

In the case of a new build with a factory-installed M2, there are three main groups of Radian-generated-data consumers: manufacturers, dealers and financiers, and customers.

Crutchfield says the manufacturer can detail up to 280 attributes about a particular yacht. “We capture the entire build sheet,” he says, adding that this helps OEM-level manufacturers optimize their billing and supply chains. Once a vessel leaves the yard, the system allows all interested parties to track the vessel’s journey to the dealership, and it gives the manufacturer insight into popular configurations.

On the dealership and finance level, Radian data can do things like provide insight into delivery times and delayed shipments, track how long each vessel has been in inventory, and track demo trips. Dealers can set geofences that trigger notifications anytime the yacht leaves the marina, and they have 24/7 access to its real-time location. The system also records the time and date that an owner officially takes possession, and it registers the vessel’s warranty.

Longer term and with the owner’s opt-in, dealers and service providers can monitor the vessel’s health and advise owners on maintenance.

Post-sale, owners can access and manage M2-gathered information via Radian’s IQ app, a web-based user interface; or a compatible multifunction display, letting them know where the boat is at any time and what happened on each trip. Here, the M2’s three-axis accelerometer and GNSS receiver capture where, when, how long, how fast and how hard a vessel was used. The system can detect abnormal vibrations, impacts, G-forces and temperatures.

In addition, owners can set an unlimited number of geofences. If these are breached, the system can alert multiple recipients via email or text.

Depending on an owner’s preferences, Radian can make onboard data and geofence information available to third parties, including engine manufacturers and insurance companies. For instance, Radian is working with multiple insurers that plan to offer discounts to owners who divulge their data.

If Radian’s technology sounds like it could add honesty to buying, maintaining and selling yachts, you’re on the right tack. One can also imagine that Radian-gathered data will be valuable to manufacturers, dealers and consumers as vessels age. So, for anyone considering a new or brokerage yacht, ask if the dealership or firm works with Radian. If you’re already an owner, it could be worth calling your insurer to see if installing an M2 could lower your rates.

For everyone else, wait a few years, and that next brokerage experience could be a lot more transparent than my close shave with that lemon on wheels so long ago.

Smart Stowaways

While Radian IoT provides a wealth of information, installation can take mere minutes. The key, according to company officials, is to mount it someplace discreet. The device has embedded tamper detection, so if thieves find it while attempting to abscond with a boat, this too shall be recorded and reported.

The post Radian IoT Manages Vessel History appeared first on Yachting.

Raymarine has unveiled new products, including the Axiom 2 Pro and Axiom 2 XL multifunction displays, a new suite of sonar products and an advanced marine camera system.

The Axiom 2 Pro is the most powerful all-in-one Axiom system ever developed, according to Raymarine. It has a fast six-core processor and an intuitive LightHouse 4 operating system. It’s available in 9-, 12- and 16-inch sizes in two variations.

The Axiom 2 Pro S includes embedded high-chirp sonar for premium cruising and sailing vessels, while the Axiom 2 Pro RVM is engineered for anglers.

Axiom 2 Pro RVM models come standard with new RealVision MAX 3D sonar, which combines chirp DownVision, SideVision and RealVision MAX 3D channels. The high-frequency chirp sonar channel also has 600 watts of output power, significantly expanding the depth range to 1,200 feet and greatly improving the clarity of fish targets detected throughout the water column.

The flagship Axiom 2 XL is designed for sportfishing yachts, offshore battlewagons and luxury cruisers, and is available in 16-, 19-, 22- and 24-inch sizes, with enhanced networking and extended multimedia capabilities. Features include HDMI input and output, and touchscreen pass-through. Axiom 2 XL screens are also built on the new six-core platform with LightHouse 4 operating system.

“Whether you are a professional offshore angler or a long-distance cruiser, Axiom 2 Pro promises the clearest sonar pictures at the greatest ranges in a display that is built to withstand the harshest conditions thrown at you,” Grégoire Outters, general manager of Raymarine, stated in a press release.

What else is new at Raymarine? The company also added the new CAM300 Marine Camera, which is slightly larger than a golf ball, with high-definition resolution and a 160-degree field of view.

Where to learn more: go to raymarine.com

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GOST has unveiled a new line of low-profile cameras called the Mini-Dome LED 1080P SS that can be installed vertically or in bulkheads, rather than overhead.

“We are constantly listening to our customers and trying to develop new solutions that meet their varied and individual needs,” Brian Kane, chief technology officer at GOST, stated in a press release. “Our new cameras give better performance and a more discreet installation than existing cameras on the market.”

During installation, the camera’s inner ball can be adjusted and then locked into position by tightening the outer bezel to achieve the desired view. The camera’s waterproof, stainless-steel case is rated for a wide range of operating temperatures. It measures 3 inches (80mm) in diameter and 1 inch (28mm) above the mounting face, so it’s small enough to be used in cramped locations.

Features include built-in IR LED illuminators, which provide a 33-foot range of night vision. The 1.8 mm wide-angle lens comes standard, with 3.6 mm and 2.8 mm lens options available.

What kinds of onboard uses does GOST recommend for this camera? Reversing and docking, onboard security and general surveillance.

Where to learn more: go to gost.com

The post GOST Unveils Low-Profile Cameras appeared first on Yachting.

The saying goes that necessity is the mother of invention. Robert Balog, KVH’s chief technology officer, experienced this firsthand a few years ago while cruising with his wife aboard their Viking Sport Cruiser 43. The couple was berthed in Nantucket, Massachusetts. While there were 20-plus Wi-Fi hotspots ashore, none offered serviceable bandwidth. The boat’s KVH-built LTE-1 provided cellular connectivity until the ferry arrived with data-starved tourists (think concerts). The couple could use their KVH-built satcom system, of course, but this was a more expensive option than shore-based cellular or Wi-Fi.

That’s when necessity met innovation as Balog pondered how a single radome could deliver next-generation connectivity.

After almost four years of hardware and network development, his idea is here. While these technologies aren’t new, KVH’s TracNet H-series terminals, which operate exclusively on KVH’s ONE hybrid network, are the first to bundle cellular, satcom and Wi-Fi antennas into one system.

In 2021, KVH unveiled its V30 satcom system, which operates on KVH’s HTS network and has ground-up architecture. This architecture is centered around an Ethernet-power-over-coaxial (EPOC) cable that shuttles data between the antenna and the system’s rack-mounted belowdecks unit (BDU) at a rate of 1,000 megabits per second (Mbps). To put this cable into perspective, V30 units transmit and receive data at up to 2 and 6 Mbps, respectively. That leaves a lot of untapped bandwidth.

Fast-forward a year, and KVH recently released its H30 ($20,000), H60 ($28,000) and H90 ($45,000) systems. The “H” stands for hybrid, referring to the ability to communicate via cellular, satcom or Wi-Fi. All three radomes have single-cable installation, allowing the stabilized satcom antenna to articulate freely inside the radome via a commercial-grade rotary joint that eliminates cable-wrap worries. All three send data to their BDU via a super-fast EPOC pipeline.

The single-channel H30 uses a 37-centimeter aluminum dish that’s stabilized across two axes. It can send and receive satcom data at up to 2 and 6 Mbps, respectively. The dual-channel H60 employs a 60 cm aluminum dish that’s stabilized across three axes. It sends and receives data via its high-speed connection at up to 3 and 10 Mbps, while its unlimited-use channel (read: crew and guests) delivers data at up to 3 and 8 Mbps. The H90 uses a 1-meter carbon-fiber dish that’s stabilized across three axes; it transmits and receives satcom data on its high-speed channel at up to 3 and 20 Mbps, while its unlimited-use channel delivers speeds up to 3 and 8 Mbps.

H60 and H90 customers seeking faster download speeds can select KVH’s Elite network, which yields speeds up to 25 Mbps (H60) and 40 Mbps (H90).

Additionally, all three systems bundle high-gain 5G/LTE and Wi-Fi antennas and radios in their radomes. This “modem in the dome” architecture is critical because cellular and Wi-Fi work on a line-of-sight basis, so having the antennas mounted up high enables better performance than systems with rail-mounted or belowdecks antennas. The radome-mounted cellular-communications equipment contains a built-in SIM card, and the BDU has an additional two SIM slots, one of which can be used by customers who want to purchase third-party cellular connectivity (say, for cruising the Bahamas). And Balog says the EPOC cable doesn’t suffer typical radio-frequency signal loss between the radome and the BDU.

All H-series systems run their cellular, satcom and Wi-Fi connections as discrete virtual local area networks (VLANs). “The [BDU] box has access to all three [VLANs], and the box decides which to use,” Balog says, adding that the BDUs employ a form of artificial intelligence to ensure lowest-cost data routing. “There’s a rules-based AI that’s looking at things like trends,” he says. The system attempts Wi-Fi connectivity first, then cellular, then satcom. “It ranks connectivity and calculates a score for each connection,” he says. “If it sees [this score] sliding, it will change connections.”

Each BDU includes a display with an intuitive graphical user interface that gives at-a-glance information about the system’s connectivity status.

H-series antennas operate exclusively on KVH’s ONE hybrid network. Satellite communications are handled by KVH’s proprietary network, while KVH partners with a global carrier for SIM cards and 5G/LTE airtime. Wi-Fi connectivity is provided locally and, like with smartphones, is typically free. Users pay a single monthly bill to KVH for their cellular and satellite communications.

Balog says it took KVH’s engineers three and a half years to create the H-series systems and ONE network. “Both were equally challenging,” he says. “We have equal-size teams working on both. It’s a mixture of hardware and software. There was nothing commercially available that could get it done, so we built all [the hardware] in-house.”

While KVH can’t optimize traffic over cellular and Wi-Fi networks the way it can with its own satcom network, Balog says the company still monitors third-party metrics, including packet loss, latency and jitter, to ensure a good user experience.

Cybersecurity is a growing concern, and KVH took big strides with the V30. This same thinking about building in protections went into the H-series antennas. “We incorporated state-of-the-art cybersecurity, from the lowest level of the bios all the way through the network security,” Balog says. “It’s so protected that even if a hacker had the box in hand, took it apart, and flashed code to change the antenna to get into the [KVH] network, it won’t run.” H-series cybersecurity includes encrypted system-level internal communications; interested owners can optionally build even taller cyber walls.

Balog says customers should see strong Wi-Fi performance with this setup, even on notoriously bad marina Wi-Fi networks. He cited a recent visit to Newport, Rhode Island, where he realized speeds of 60 to 70 Mbps using his H60 over a marina Wi-Fi network; the speed (or really, lack thereof) plummeted to less than 10 Mbps when he bypassed the H60 and just used his iPhone.

So, if you’re interested in bolstering your onboard communications and like the idea of an end-to-end satellite-communications network that’s piggybacked with cellular and Wi-Fi communications, KVH’s latest offerings are worth considering. The gains can be huge (pun intended), even if a ferry full of data-hungry tourists arrives just as you’re settling in for some après web surfing.

Rack-Mounted Cybersecurity

While KVH’s TracNet systems provide robust cybersecurity, yacht owners seeking enterprise-grade network security could consider adding a FortiNet firewall. This rack-mounted white box and attached subscription service ($250 per month) works with KVH’s hardware and network, and can, among other capabilities, determine whether an infected device is attempting to join a network.

The post Staying Connected with KVH’s TracNet and ONE Hybrid Network appeared first on Yachting.

Iris Innovations, which makes onboard security cameras and situational awareness systems, has partnered with Garmin on the IrisControl app.

The app is now compatible with Garmin’s TD50 5-inch display.

Iris redesigned the IrisControl software, in conjunction with its CMAC range of camera management and control systems, into a control pad-style application for Garmin’s TD50 displays.

Users can also view and control onboard cameras from the IrisControl interface even if they aren’t using a compatible Garmin system.

“In 2021, we launched the CMAC range of camera management and control systems for boats,” Carl Hitchcock, managing director of Iris Innovations, stated in a press release. “Hosting the unique and feature-packed IrisControl app for the Garmin OneHelm platform, CMAC provided boat owners with a single unified camera management, control and recording interface. Now, our proven software is greatly enhanced, allowing us to offer Garmin’s TD50 with the same great functionality.”

The TD50 interface is marketed as being ideal for larger vessels where screens are set back out of reach, or are not touch-based.

How might this work on board? By installing a Garmin TD50 version of the IrisControl interface into a captain’s chair or within arm’s reach, users can now fully control, switch, manage and review their onboard camera video.

Take the next step: go to boat-cameras.com.

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The hackers didn’t break into the 2018 European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition. They were invited inside.

By whom? Satcom Direct, a Florida-based firm that specializes in hardware, software and end-to-end connectivity for the aviation and marine sectors.

The company welcomed what’s known as ethical, or “white hat,” hackers to its EBACE booth to create a trial by digital fire. The white hats publicly demonstrated the kinds of real-world cyber threats—including phishing, password deciphering and system compromise—that black-hat hackers pose. At the same time, Satcom Direct showcased its cybersecurity and threat-monitoring offerings.

Some attendees found themselves pondering just how secure their systems are. Jets, sport-fishing vessels and superyachts differ in design and capabilities, but people who own them want to transition from one to the next with reliable, secure connectivity. Virtual private networks can provide device-level protection for smartphones and personal computers ashore, but VPNs can cause speed bumps when used with satcom systems like the ones aboard yachts. The idea behind Satcom Direct’s recently expanded marine division is to simplify moving from one’s Gulfstream G800 to the Viking 80C while staying connected.

Satcom Direct was founded in Melbourne, Florida, in 1997, with the goal of creating a 10-digit, US-based phone number (called the Global One Number) that could reach a satellite phone in-flight, irrespective of latitude or longitude. Next, the company began innovating secure end-to-end communications solutions for the aviation, government, land-mobile and marine sectors.

A big piece came together in 2016, when Satcom Direct acquired COMSAT, the US government-formed corporation that helped create the International Telecommunications Satellite Consortium in 1964 and put the first geostationary commercial communications satellite into orbit in 1966. This acquisition included two satellite ground stations—one in Southbury, Connecticut, and the other in Santa Paula, California—that Satcom Direct uses to facilitate its end-to-end connectivity solutions.

Secure and reliable satellite communications depend on these ground-based networks and infrastructure. That’s why Satcom Direct also owns a 25,000-square-foot Tier 3 (it’s online almost constantly) data center in Melbourne, Florida, and internet points of presence, which serve as on-ramps for local traffic to join the internet. Satcom Direct connects clients to its land-based infrastructure via redundant, third-party land- and satellite-based links that the company uses to create a proprietary data and voice communications network (see sidebar). Satcom Direct monitors and maintains this network from its facilities in California, Connecticut and Florida.

“Satcom Direct is a data-management company,” says Michael Skou Christensen, the company’s chief commercial officer for private aviation and marine. He says there are four main pillars to the business: providing a communications link from a customer’s antenna to a satellite; providing hardware that enables this connectivity; providing software as a service; and providing the supporting infrastructure that allows Satcom Direct to control and securely route data from when it leaves a client’s vessel to its destination.

Satcom Direct offers three scalable levels of cyber protection. Level 1 has threat monitoring and mitigation, and includes an enterprise-level firewall, embedded antivirus software, and intrusion detection and prevention systems. Level 2 adds advanced-level encryption capabilities. Level 3 adds the company’s Private Network, which routes encrypted data back ashore without trafficking it over the public internet.

In March, Satcom Direct announced it was bolstering its marine division by creating new services for owners of private jets, sport-fishing vessels, and mega- and superyachts. The Marine Router and Marine Rack support its new service. The router creates a local area network (LAN) using cellular, Wi-Fi or satcom connectivity that onboard wireless devices join. The rack houses the router, provides uninterrupted power and switching, and lets owners scale their service.

Christensen says owners can achieve Level 1 and 2 using the Marine Router; Level 3 requires additional hardware and a data center. “We can send the data to a client’s own IT department,” he says, or clients can “let us handle the data.”

Either way, he adds, “The real power isn’t in the individual elements.” The system shines when aircraft and vessel networks “become one.”

What sets the router apart is “the transparency on the LAN and how it overlaps with the satellite link,” Christensen says. “It’s a powerful support tool for us, and for the captain and the crew. Instead of defending on a device level, we defend the yacht on an antenna level.”

This umbrella defense can be scaled to fit each owner’s needs.

“The difference between a sport-fishing vessel and a superyacht is a level of scalability,” Christensen says. “Sport-fishing vessels have [fewer] straight [data] requirements, as there are [fewer] people on board. With superyachts, the complexity keeps going up, with more users.”

Christensen says clients are increasingly adopting Level 3 protection. But, as with many things yacht-related, the solutions are not one-size-fits-all kits. “We’ll help you design the right system,” Christensen says.

So, if you cruise from your office to your Nordhavn or Viking in your private jet, check out Satcom Direct. Odds are good this company can help keep your ones and zeros flowing while keeping hackers of all hat colors isolated and ashore.

Satellite Agnosticism

While Satcom Direct owns terrestrial infrastructure and facilities, it works with satellite providers—including Intelsat, Inmarsat, Viasat and Iridium—as an airtime reseller. This long-standing setup allows the company to focus on creating hardware and software solutions on the router and rack level while giving customers maximum network and hardware flexibility

The post Satcom Direct’s Security in the Air, at Sea appeared first on Yachting.

Inmarsat, which makes mobile satellite communications systems for yachts, has launched Fleet Secure Unified Threat Management.

UTM is a standard option on Inmarsat’s Fleet Xpress service to protect superyacht networks against cyberattacks. It adds to other cybersecurity options the company offers, including Fleet Secure Endpoint and Fleet Secure Cyber Awareness Training.

Inmarsat developed UTM in partnership with maritime cybersecurity specialist Port-IT. It combines multiple network security tools in a single application.

New solutions are needed, the company says, because data use on board has tripled since the onset of the pandemic. All that extra data use creates what Inmarsat calls a “growing superyacht network surface area” for cyberattacks that can affect onboard control systems.

Fleet Secure UTM capabilities can include gateway antivirus software, intrusion detection and prevention, web-content filtering and application control. All users of Fleet Secure UTM get asset management, alerting and reporting capability that fully aligns with International Maritime Organization 2021 compliance on cybersecurity risk management.

Bronze, silver and gold versions of Fleet UTM are available. Gold users can access advanced scanning based on artificial intelligence for malicious codes beyond known signatures to block zero-day attacks.

Does Fleet Secure UTM have its own security portal? Yes. It lets users monitor traffic in all connected networks to protect operational technology, Internet of Things and crew communications, among others.

Take the next step: Click over to inmarsat.com

The post Inmarsat Launches Fleet Secure Unified Threat Management appeared first on Yachting.

Security and situational-awareness technologies aren’t typically missed until they’re needed. For example, my family didn’t spend much time pondering onboard security until our sailboat was robbed. Likewise, I didn’t realize how dependent I’d become on my car’s backup camera until I recently drove an older ride.

Cellular-enabled security systems can alert today’s yachtsmen to intruders, and onboard cameras can simplify docking from a helm with obscured sightlines, even if these capabilities are still a far cry from the movies where a tripped security sensor raises alarms and triggers multiple cameras to start recording.

But what if onboard cameras and security technologies could be integrated, giving owners better asset protection and situational awareness? That’s the promise of Iris Innovations’ CMAC system.

Onboard security systems and marinized daylight and thermal-imaging cameras aren’t new, but this equipment has, until now, operated independently (shy of some bespoke networking). The CMAC system lets owners integrate cameras and onboard alarms, as well as control and manage them via a multifunction display, app or dedicated Iris screen. If the yacht is connected to the internet, users can keep an eye out from afar. Also, model depending, users can record their camera’s video stream locally.

The CMAC system has a black box mounted belowdecks that sits between a yacht’s cameras and security system. “It’s a centralized hub that all cameras [and security systems] connect to,” says Carl Hitchcock, Iris Innovations’ technical director.

CMAC bolsters the effectiveness of the camera and onboard alarm systems, which users can control via the Iris Control HTML5 app’s graphical user interface. The system offers different levels of user-selected automation. The app can reside on networked multifunction displays or wireless devices, or be accessed via a third-party app.

To set up the system, users upload deck plans and photos of their yacht, and then drag and drop icons onto the deck plans to represent where their networked cameras (fixed or pan, tilt and zoom, known collectively as PTZ) and security-system sensors are located. Then, users can activate and control networked cameras by tapping the onscreen icons, and can arm or disarm the security system via touchscreen. Should the security system trip, the icon representing the tripped sensor flashes red, and users can instantly command nearby cameras—either manually or via the system’s automated settings—to put electronic eyes on that region of the yacht. All told, the CMAC system supports 32 onboard cameras and multiple alarm inputs.

In addition, the Iris Control HTML5 app delivers a virtual joystick that lets users direct PTZ cameras to areas or individuals of interest. While the Iris Control HTML5 app was initially created to work with Garmin’s OneHelm system, Hitchcock says the app’s HTML5 architecture makes it easy to integrate with other manufacturers’ displays.

Likewise, CMAC is designed to work with a variety of daylight and thermal-imaging cameras, meaning yachtsmen don’t need to spec Iris-built cameras to leverage CMAC’s full capabilities. CMAC also works with most security systems, as long as Iris Innovations has access to the system’s protocol. Additionally, Iris Innovations plans to launch its own security system this year.

Iris Innovations builds three versions of CMAC. The basic version ($350) delivers interface controls for the yacht’s security system and all networked cameras (this is ideal for smaller boats, including center-consoles). The IP-only version ($1,195) works with cameras that have internet protocol enabled, while the hybrid version ($1,865) works with analog, IP, analog-high-definition, and transport- or composite-video-interface cameras. The IP-only and hybrid versions each have a 4-terabyte solid-state hard drive housed in a stabilized, vibration-resistant caddy. This drive records imagery and can be removed and plugged into a computer to review footage.

CMAC works with standard door, hatch and pressure security sensors, and it can detect motion in the cameras’ video signals. Should CMAC detect motion, or if a sensor is tripped, CMAC can be programed to activate lights, auditory alarms and cameras, in addition to alerting the yacht’s owner.

“CMAC can tell two cameras to spin around and look at that area,” Hitchcock says, adding that CMAC’s IP-only and hybrid versions can be set up to constantly record video imagery onto their hard drives, even when the yacht is unattended. “It [records] using a low frame rate and low-resolution [imagery], but if the alarm is tripped, it automatically increases the frame rate and resolution.”

CMAC also can use facial-recognition software to identify suspicious behavior. “Owners can set the system up so that it knows what [they] look like and doesn’t trip” when owners come aboard, Hitchcock says.

The system’s automation isn’t limited to security functions. For example, Hitchcock says, if an operator wants to look at a gauge in the engine room, he can pull up the engine-room map on the multifunction display and tap an icon. CMAC will turn one or more cameras to look at the gauge.

Automation can also simplify stern-to berthing. “Owners can set up an icon and have two cameras switched to the stern,” he says.

Last, if the yacht has internet connectivity via Wi-Fi, cellular or satellite networks, owners can monitor and control the cameras and security system from afar. “CMAC can send messages via email or push notification,” he says.

So, if you’re outfitting a new yacht, refitting your existing ride, or want tighter synergy between your security system and onboard cameras, CMAC could be the right investment. Odds are good that once you get accustomed to the system’s level of integrated situational awareness, anything less will feel a lot like driving an old-school automobile.

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