2 Avionics template 2.qxp_YearBook Template 11/08/2016 13:17 Page 39
Avionics
Figure 3: Highlights of some cabin features a walk-on PED may control
Platforms
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Some of the major onboard connectivity providers are: Cobham Gogo Honeywell Rockwell Collins* Thales True North VIASAT *Note the recent acquisition of ICG.
COURTESY JETCRAFT CORPORATION
Figure 4: A clean cabin, with the potential to use only PED devices. Note the need for a bulkhead monitor may be necessary for safety-related and other essential passenger video-based briefings, or data.
Enabling this capability is not easy as there are Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android to deal with, including different versions thereof. There is also the extent to which you may want to use a Personal Electronic Device (PED), such as an ability to control many of the aircraft cabin features, thereby reducing the need for switches, controls and wiring. PEDs may connect the passenger into their home-office Virtual Private Network (VPN), allow video conferencing and enable streaming of TV or movies. The range limitation of the information media is set by the capability of the satellite and aircraft satcom, bandwidth and baud rate. Today, via a satcom service provider, customers may select information speeds from Kilobits per second (Kbps) to multiples of Megabits per second (Mbps). Meanwhile using 4G ‘air to ground’ (ATG) both on the ground and during flights over terrain, bit rates of 2-12 Mbps may soon be expected.
The above connectivity provider platforms can be exotic, covering most aspects of cabin functionality. Aircraft OEMs will typically embrace these integrated platforms and, in collaboration with the equipment supplier provide brand identifiers such as Venue, Ovation or AeroWave. In those cases, the system is usually holistic, extending throughout the cabin, and even reaching into the cockpit with some of its features. Companies like VIASAT have moved into the aircraft itself, having originated from the satellite end of things. VIASAT’s VIP Inflight Internet includes most of the aircraft equipment required, and the company can also provide both Ku- and Ka-band services on the same aircraft. Passengers can expect somewhere near 12 Mbps speeds on their individual devices whenever the Kaband is in use, allowing for intensive applications such as teleconferencing or video streaming.
Security, Interference & Vulnerability
Security: Security, via encryption and other means, is essential when using the more accessible connectivity that is available today. Manufacturers are hard at work, continuously improving their protections to stay one step ahead of the hackers and intruders. Some new onboard routers can automatically alert users when flying in certain airspaces where it is required for data to go via ground stations. This requirement increases the ability of foreign agencies to ‘see’ sensitive information. Interference: Interference is another concern, where onboard systems must not interfere with primary aircraft operating systems. Integrators of inflight systems are subject to rigorous controls, via the Type Certificate (TC) and Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) process of certification. New systems are flown and aircraft avionics monitored for interference, both from the inflight system to avionics and the other way around. Vulnerability: It must be understood that increasingly, we are becoming reliant on the use of satellites and they are vulnerable to meddling from unfriendly sources. As with the GPS constellation and its use for Performance Based Navigation (PBN), concerns over reliance on satellite technology for