IFExpress readers: Don’t get cold feet over this bit of aviation communication technology; however, it might help to get started by reviewing today’s aircraft ACARS System.

For the last few years, Axel Jahn’s TriaGnoSys has never ceased to amaze us. First it was IFE and then Connectivity, last year it was weather, and now, his company is proposing and testing what we like to consider as the new ACARS… all in association with his “One-Box-Wonder”. If you aren’t a pilot type, ACARS is a digital datalink system for transmission of short, simple, protocol heavy messages between mostly commercial aircraft and ground. The TriaGnoSys solution, SANDRA (Seamless Aeronautical Networking through integration of Data links, Radios and Antennas), described in their own words as a proof-of-concept testbed of future IPv6-based connectivity, which integrates cockpit communications with both passenger and non-operational airline communications into a common system architecture. Check out their press release. SANDRA is a connectivity approach that uses modern data protocols and if you don’t know about the company, be advised that TriaGnoSys Research and Development focuses on a broad range of mobile communication fields, including mobile end-to-end solutions, wireless In-flight Entertainment (IFE), next generation satellite connectivity and cabin/cockpit communication, as well as combined navigation and communications technologies.

Charlie Pryor, TriaGnoSys PR told IFExpress: “It’s really about two things. The first is bringing seamless comms to the cockpit (as you say, seamless is important). What that means is from a pilot’s perspective he/she will be in touch with the ground throughout the flight, either using datalink or, where necessary, voice. It will be just a case of using it, without having to fiddle around connecting to the satellite or VHF or whatever. In the background, the system will choose the best connection – a satellite or whichever air-to-ground network is most appropriate. So it will be simple for the pilot to use, and efficient. It is also moving cockpit comms towards digital and away from analogue. The second element is that it integrates with passenger connectivity. It uses the same networks, but with segregation for security. It is a concept at the moment – it works but needs more development to make it operational.”

The chart on this page may help.

We thought it would be a good idea to talk to the TriaGnoSys folks and they said: “Don’t forget this is early research. The aim is to continue working on the development of this technology, moving closer to implementation. TriaGnoSys sees the next stage as a further European-funded programme, with several of the same SANDRA partners, in particular working with increased focus on the issue you highlighted integrated technology for the cockpit and the cabin, while ensuring segregation. In SANDRA, TriaGnoSys has done much of the theoretical work, as well as fundamental design and development work to achieve an early functional demonstration; implementation in real operation will require more work and further proof-of-concept trials and demos on higher TRL levels.”

Q: If voice is least preferred communication methodology (and we understand why), how is the aircraft/ground info displayed?

A: That depends entirely on the avionics system on the aircraft. But it would be displayed in a very similar way to current controller–pilot data link communications (CPDLC) data.

Q: What is the range of info requests/updates… weather, fuel, traffic, aircraft status?

A: Theoretically, there is no limit to the type of data that can be transmitted. It depends on what the regulators, air traffic providers and airlines want to use it for. There will be more bandwidth available. In fact, SESAR has specified use of future data links for ATS and AOC in the COCR (now v2), which is kind of work in progress still and is the reference for (a) what data is exchanged and (b) what are the requirements for the data link

Q: How is passenger data involved?

A: Passenger data is involved inasmuch as the cockpit and cabin will share suitable link capacities, though with strict segregation to provide security.

Q: Who pays what and when and how?

A: That is really a question to address when we get to the implementation stage. However, it is likely to be a combination of the airline, for the cockpit side, and the passenger for the cabin side.

5. What is the present-day total coverage?

A: Coverage of all flight routes is one of the key aims of SANDRA, which is why the technology uses both both satellite and ground radio links.

Q: And finally, why is this coming to aircraft now?

A: There is “a common agreement” that the current practice of voice-centric ATC and limited bandwidth cockpit data links will limit future air traffic growth. In response to that, SESAR and NextGen are specifying the future data-centric concept of operations, with future data links as a central element (LDACS, AeroMACS, Iris). ICAO has already set the framework for the next generation global Aeronautical Telecommunication Network (ATN) based on IPv6 in the ATN/IPS SARPS Doc. 9896, specifying minimum communication protocols and services required for the implementation of the future ICAO ATN. This is the background for SANDRA and why this projects brings IPv6 data links onto an aircraft.

Q: BTW, is this loosely considered airborne data integration?

A: Yes, basically that is exactly what it is.

Q: We gather this is not a “replacement” for ACARS, then?

A: SANDRA is not a replacement of ACARS. In fact, it was originally designed to transmit ACARS messages over SANDRA. So ACARS applications may run over the new links in the transitional phase, possibly being replaced by new protocols. SANDRA is more about the seamless integration of the communications technology than the details of the services that run over the communications.

Stay Tuned!