Projects

This project provides end-users who have
standard UMTS terminals with new exciting services
through satellite based multicasting of multimedia
content to Base Stations of cellular networks. The
integration between UMTS access technology and
satellite IP broadcasting requires the insertion, in each
base station necessary for UMTS coverage, of a
parabolic satellite antenna and an equipment box able
to adapt satellite transmission stream to the suitable
UMTS channel. The box is interconnected through the
appropriate open UMTS interfaces to the network, in
order to allow the UMTS operator to manage the offered
services.

SpaceForScience aims to facilitate the
scientific cooperation in Europe, especially in Southern
and Eastern Europe, by providing virtual, collaborative
working and education applications for research
institutions, via either fast academic networks or bidirectional
satellite links. The goal of SpaceForScience is
to enable distant centres all over Europe to connect,
meet, work, teach and learn wherever their
geographical position, thus enabling isolated institutes
to enter into the cooperative research, education and
technology transfer networks.

Wired Ocean's objective is to significantly
improve the availability of internet access from ships at
sea. Compared to existing systems the Wired Ocean
system has the potential to increase internet access
speeds by a factor of ten and to reduce costs by 70% to
90%. The chosen technology is a 'hybrid' of broadband
Ku-band satellites for the downlink and narrowband
mobile satellites (or cellular) for the uplink. A specialised
client server is developed (the Wired Ocean Satellite
Broadband Server) to manage the communications
sessions at the ship end. The server interfaces to a
tracking TV receive only (TVRO) antenna to receive the
downlink and to a narrowband terminal for the uplink.

Phase 3 of the REMSAT II program
expands the capabilities of the system developed and
deployed under the preceding REMSAT II program
phases. The primary area of development is the
monitoring and surveillance capabilities required for
checking rivers that are prone to flooding. The system
consists of a portable weather station, a system for flow
monitoring and a series of surveillance cameras
deployed along the river to monitor the rise. The current
methods of measuring snow pack melt rates and snow
cover will be further developed using satellite images to
improve prediction of potential flood prone areas.

The project aims at the development of a
unique software tool, based on INNOVIS' BizSmart"
workflow and Enterprise Application Integration platform
and utilising satellite communication technologies. The
new tool allows the execution of tasks and process steps
anywhere in the world, irrespective of the
communications device the task assignee has access to.
The BizSmart SAT system will be targeted at large
corporations and organisations, willing to set-up their
own workflow and integration suite and will practically
allow them to 'satellite-enable' all of their existing
software applications.

The objective of the project is to provide a
reporting system which will enable the in-flight reporting
of airline operational data over satellite communication
systems. The reporting system will provide the Flight
Crew and Cabin staff with the ability to issue reports
during all phases of flight. A ground based server will
make the reports available to authorised personnel and
legacy airline systems in real time over the Internet.
The ability to transfer important data en route means
the aircraft turnaround cycle will be performed more
efficiently.

EDIBS® is a DVB-compliant technology of
embedded content transmission, partly based on MHP. It
works with most MHP-compliant set-top boxes equipped
with a hard disk without any hard- or software
adaptations. The combination of embedded content
enables broadcasters to embed additional video clips of
an unlimited size and in broadcast quality into their TV
programme without requiring additional transmission
bandwidth. Once additional content is transmitted, it is
received and managed by the MHP-compliant EDIBS
client application. The broadcaster defines the criteria
for viewers to be able to make use of this additional
content.

The "Multi-PID" project has developed and
demonstrated a state-of-the-art, fully automated system to allow multiple DVB broadcast satellite channels to be
filtered, processed and monitored in order to supply
content playout information to be reported back to the
content owners. The Multi-PID platform provides a
comprehensive and cost-effective method of monitoring
all of the main European broadcast channels, which is
far more efficient than a pan-European terrestrial
monitoring network.

eWave VideoServer is an interactive telelearning
system based on MHP. It is especially designed
to educate operators of highly complex technical
equipment. Operators will be able to work with the
technical equipment by using the simulated user
interface on the TV. A high quality video image provides
a detailed view of the equipment. Direct connection of
sensors allows visualisation of the main parameters on
the TV screen. Through the standard IP return channel
it is possible to interact with the equipment and to
simulate failure situations, enable failure identification
and perform recovery actions.

The SatServ project aims to provide a real
time chart updating service, including new chart
editions; access to maritime navigational information,
such as weather and tidal information; and required
input for the weather routing system. With this system,
C-MAP aims to become a one-stop shop for all nautical
information necessary for the mariner. The SatServ project intends to enable C-MAP to improve online
access to navigational information via a single
communication terminal. The project aims to make use
of customers' already installed Satcom platform, to
reduce costs and to avoid any need for extra
equipment.

Under this project access technologies
using cost-effective broadband IP-based communications
services are developed to establish asymmetrical
broadband communications to ships. The project
envisages the development and validation of two
possible product/service configurations that would allow
the use of higher frequency bands and their associated
increased bandwidth to enable broadband
communications, TV access and telephone service.

ESEMAR is a system providing one and
two-way satellite interconnectivity and associated
applications for on-board and on-shore solutions for
maritime travel and tourism. ESEMAR offers a suite of
multimedia networking services such as Fast Internet,
Thematic Interactive Channel, Multimedia Content
Delivery, Symmetric Conference and Telephone/fax over
IP. Two principal market segments are being considered:
cruise liners and ferry lines.

The project objective is to upgrade the
Web-Sat interactive satellite system for IP access to the
DVB-S2 standard to allow a more efficient use of
satellite bandwidth and significantly improve the
commercial position of Web-Sat in the marketplace. The
project includes a pilot phase with integration of existing
services with a set of services developed under the
specific scope of this project.

The GigaManPack project aims to provide
a more highly integrated terminal than currently
available by taking advantage of MPEG-4 video and
MPEG-2 audio encoding techniques. It either transmits
directly via satellite using a DVB transport stream,
including encryption, or uses locally available
telecommunications connections. The terminal also
incorporates electronic hardware to provide antenna
control with auto-pointing and auto-acquisition software.
It incorporates a communication modem to provide
remote order wire capability and talkback facilities if
desired.

The EODIS network and services are
being developed with the aim to disseminate the large
amount of EO products coming from the Ground
Segments of several Acquisition Stations. This will
establish a complete end-to-end data distribution
service over a satellite link complemented by a
terrestrial network (Internet) used to transfer protocol
control messages.

The purpose of the Cast4All Content
Conductor software suite developed in this project is to
create a complete turnkey solution for satellite-based
content distribution management in general, and digital
cinema networks in particular. The system provides a
fully integrated solution for the operation of such
networks, including reliable and secure transmission,
and also network management, distributed content
management, dynamic scheduling, and allocation of
resources. It also implies a distributed system with
zero-administration effort at the remote sites.

The IHT Lift Channel system enables
multimedia clips for any purpose to be assembled and
then simultaneously transmitted via satellite to any
number of remote locations across Europe. The content,
distributed via satellite, is then presented on screens
within the client building. This may include a lift
compartment. Any kind of media can be displayed from
moving video with audio, to still pictures and graphics.
The system can be used for advertising purposes and
many different applications such as information sharing,
the provision of safety information and topical news
relevant to a particular organisation.

The GWVAS project is dedicated to
developing and operating on a trial basis a Value-Added
Application Server which will meet both current and
future application needs employing the GlobalWave
wireless system. GlobalWave is an end-to-end satellitebased
packet data system, which operates with a
variety of existing L-band geostationary satellites, and
provides tracking, monitoring and control and short
message services to a wide variety of fixed and mobile
assets.

The SM@RT project ("Satellite medical
applications for Regional Terminals") aims at promoting
a new interactive telecommunications application
("Video portal"), targeted at the Medical, Scientific and
Pharmaceutical communities. The application was
designed to support satellite-based distribution of highquality
multimedia contents like medical protocol
databases, corporate scientific and pharmaceutical
agent information materials and video
communications.

Health Information Services, brand name Telesana, is a television- and IP-based information platform addressing patients in waiting rooms and doctors in surgeries. Based on two different service
versions (Telesana Live Patients and Telesana
Professional), the Health Information Services use
satellite communication to reach both target groups - patients and doctors - with a mixed content stream of DVB and IP.

SKYMED is dedicated to develop and
operate in a pilot service phase an advanced satellite
based eLearning system to support Continuing Medical
Education (CME) services. The final objective of the
project is the set-up and validation of satellite based
high end quality services (not comparable to those
available on Internet) and the definition of CME services
as part of Telbios' spin-off company portfolio.

The Healthtrack Professional Service
(HPS) is a satellite based broadband network connecting
medical General Practitioners (GPs), hospital consultants
and pharmacies with the pharmaceutical industry and
other service providers in the sector. The service
provides a high-speed channel for the parties to send
and receive large quantities of media rich information in
the form of text, pictures, video and interactive
educational packages.

The objective of this project is to develop
and integrate an airborne user terminal based on
satcom, navigation and computing commercial modules.
The target market is the ultra-light aviation segment
made up of aircraft owners and operators. The terminal
will be tested in a real airborne environment with the
application software needed for new services
provisioning. The produced terminal could also prepare
the ground for applications dedicated to the general and
commercial aviation market and for employment of
other space segments in the airborne environment.

The European Medical Network (EMN) has
been formed to create a distance-learning service for the medical professions in Europe. The EMN platform includes at its core a menu-driven digital satellite broadcast combined with an Internet service. The Pilot project has been launched in order to assess and verify the acceptance of the proposed service by the target groups, the operational and financial feasibility throughout the entire value chain and prepare for the build-up of an operational service.

The MultiMED project is designed around
the concept of providing remote access to the high
fidelity medical simulation services at the Bristol Medical
Simulation Centre (BMSC). In addition to providing
indirect and direct access to the simulator itself,
MultiMED adds several layers of context-sensitive
information, database and news resources which
combine to provide a high quality education and training
product suite.

The Mobile Web Services Framework plans
to deliver a product prototype comprising a set of
standard web services, which can be deployed on any
type of mobile satellite user terminal. The standard
services include network performance testing services, a
web cam service, a field data retrieval service and a
GPS service. Additional web services can be created
within the framework, using specific APIs for tight
integration with the satellite modem and other devices
deployed. A field validation campaign will be executed
using a mobile web server connected to the Inmarsat RBGAN
terminals.

The objective of this project is the definition and development of a universal integrated Ku-band transceiver (CR 1216L), which will be compliant to the Sat Lab specifications.

The SkyLAN concept consists in splitting functions usually performed by a single large telecommunication satellite among a number of co-located and interlinked smaller satellites. In other words, SkyLAN is a cluster of relatively small satellites that perform an integrated function through a coordinated exchange of information via Inter-Satellite links (ISL).

The project objective is to design and manufacture VSAT Waveguide Lens Antennas (WGLA) for the Ku-satellite band, 10.75-14.50 GHz.

The main objective of the project was to perform a Delta Qualification Programme of Axially Grooved Heat Pipes (AGHPs) as requested in the ESA standard PSS-49 (TST-01) Issue 2 (March 2003). The main features of this AGHP technology were transferred from TAIS, Russia to IberEspacio.

The project DELOS intends to develop the IP-core which will offer an excellent opportunity to accelerate DVB-RCS market growth and remove any technological incompatibilities.

The project objectives are to define collocation requirements and station keeping strategies for geostationary satellites, develop a software tool and a GNCDE-compatible template in MATLAB, and to execute simulated test scenarios.

The main objective of the study is to build and test as an EQM, a partial focal array fully representative in terms of RF, mechanical and thermal performances to the selected baseline solution.

The objective of this activity is the definition and development of a universal integrated 2 watt Ku-band transceiver (KR 1216L) which will be compliant to the Sat Lab specifications.

The aim is to develop a new transport protocol for the satellite link, which makes it efficient to use satellites in internet-based networks or multimedia applications while maintaining compatibility with existing applications and networks.

The project aims to address the difficulties of carrying VoIP (Voice over IP) traffic over shared satellite services, especially DVB-RCS. It will result in a commercially saleable device which allows telecom operators to deploy a range of satellite-based commercial services.

Key main expected benefit is to be able to accommodate large propellant tank for heavy missions without the need to use Electric propulsion onboard.

The objective of this project is to develop frequency generating modules to EQM level. Four different Local Oscillator Modules were defined, ranging from 20MHz to 2.4GHz.

Within Step 3 of the project TEDG will improve the existing L-Band tube in the 150 W class which is used for the operational satellite system WORLSTAR. The main objectives are efficiency improvement, extending the power class up to 250 W output power, increase of the bandwidth and development of a radiation cooled version.

The MultiSat system extends ESA's Mission Control system SCOS-2000. It provides the means required to support more than a single spacecraft per computing node at a given time.