Runtime Evaluation and Prediction System (REPS)

Field observational programs coordinated under the Ocean.US program require a reliable,global coverage, cost-effective, and flexible method of returning data from remoteplatforms, including moorings, surface drifters, and ALACE and PALACE floats. Thepresent methods of doing this have many disadvantages: high costs, excessive latency,limited bandwidth, and limited geographic coverage.The PI proposes an integrated system for the retrieval and delivery of data fromremote-moored and drifting unmanned sites and platforms in the ocean, using theIridium Low Earth Orbiting Satellite (LEOS) system as the data carrier. The projectwill be coordinated with the Ocean.US Office and Ocean.US participants. The systemwill include a remote data communications package, bulk purchases and managementof Iridium airtime, a data download hub with an Internet gateway, two-way comm-unications capability, and itemized billing.In Phase I, the PI will work in close collaboration with the NOPP Ocean.US Officeto develop a detailed design, determine the cost-effectiveness of the proposedsystem and compare it with existing and planned next generation systems. We willprepare a risk and cost-benefit analysis comparison. We will also survey themarket, both within the US oceanographic community and beyond.The anticipated benefits to the ocean research and operational communities are theavailability of a system for the retrieval of remote data from ocean platforms which:= Provides true global geographic coverage= Uses a small, lightweight, low-power remote unit= Includes platform location capability= Provides higher base bandwidth (10 kbits/sec) than currently-available systems= Allows for channel multiplexing to achieve higher effective bandwidths= Has a lower cost per kilobyte of data traffic than any currently-available system= Can transmit data in real-time= Allows two-way communications= Provides a central system for support, itemized billing, and carrier quality monitoring= Provides a mechanism for automatic real-time distribution of data via the Internet= Provides a web-based data management and display serviceThe system will be cost effective for delivery of data from terrestrial sites as wellas ocean platforms. It has many potential commercial applications, including datacommunications for:= Ocean drilling platforms= River monitoring stations= Vessels at sea and in port (e-mail and data)= Geologic (earthquake) monitoring sites= Hazardous waste monitoring sites= Railroad infrastructure monitors= High-value mobile cargo monitoring= ...and othersThe proposed system would have advantages over the systems presently used for theseapplications:= Low cost per kbyte= Higher bandwidth= A single protocol/procedure globally= Lower cost equipment= Global coverage= Real-time data delivery= Allows two-way communications= Central itemized billing for multiple sites