{mprestriction ids="1,2"} Adding to KVH Watch IoT Connectivity as a Service, which was introduced last year, KVH will now offer Remote Expert Intervention, a satellite optimised video collaboration application designed to enable on-demand high-throughput remote support sessions between vessels at sea and experts on shore. The focus on remote collaboration enables maritime equipment manufacturers to use their most experienced experts on shore to give real-time guidance to onboard crew for troubleshooting, repair, and identification of replacement parts that are needed, thereby avoiding costly service calls, minimising delays in port, and making support more effective.

“By using deep sea transit time, Remote Expert Intervention goes well beyond simply monitoring the performance of onboard equipment,” said Sven-Eric Brooks, KVH’s senior director for IoT business development. “It enables maritime equipment manufacturers to take action and provide real-time support via video, voice, and text, even when the equipment is on a vessel in the middle of the ocean.”

Remote support at sea is particularly relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic and for the future of the digital ship as maritime operators seek increased operating efficiencies by adopting a range of digital processes including cloud-based services, telemedicine, video conferencing, virtual payments, and electronic invoicing, according to industry experts. Current IoT solutions that utilise cellular connectivity fall short due to being out of range while at sea and unpredictably expensive when roaming. Solutions relying on L-band suffer from limited and expensive bandwidth; they cannot support high-speed bursts or video sessions at sea.

KVH also offers IoT InsideTM, an IoT solution for vessel operators using their new or existing KVH TracPhone V7-HTS and TracPhone V11-HTS antenna systems. These systems offer both a high-speed and unlimited use data channel that can be used by vessel managers to provide VSAT connectivity for operations and crew while also supporting data transfers for remote equipment monitoring. Other IoT Inside features include vessel tracking managed through KVH’s secure myKVHTM portal and mini-VSAT ManagerTM, and IoT Proactive Monitoring, which safeguards every fielded KVH HTS terminal with continual performance measurements. {/mprestriction}