International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT)
ISSN: 2278-0181
Vol. 2 Issue 3, March - 2013
Aircell Axxess Cabin Communication Systems For Aircrafts
1
Ms. Geetha Hanumanthu, 2 Mr. Kiran Chander M
1
Bombardier India Centre, Mahindra Satyam, Bangalore, India
2
Bombardier India Centre, Mahindra Satyam, Bangalore, India
Abstract built a revolutionary new mobile broadband network
for commercial and business aviation. Aircell is the
In today’s scenario, every activity needs comfort, and single point of contact to outfit aircrafts with the most
advanced airborne communications today and
most importantly which saves time. The Aircraft being
tomorrow. With a total of more than, 6000 customers
first of its kind, doesn’t serve all needs of passengers. worldwide, Aircell is the undisputed leader in global
Especially most of the passengers like to stay in touch airborne communications. The Aircell Network
in flight. All the electronic gadgets once entered into provides airlines with connectivity to operations and a
the aircrafts are asked to be switch off. There won’t be path to enhanced cabin services such as video, audio,
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any communication with the outside world. Imagine television and more. The Aircell 3G network includes
surfing the web, making online dinner reservations, many ground towers strategically positioned around the
country that provide data rates to the cabin that average
arranging ground transportation, reserving a tee time
around 2.2 Mbps.
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by Wi-Fi-enabled laptop, PDA or dual-mode
Smartphone – or simply having a clear, uninterrupted
2. Beginning of Aircell
phone conversation – before the passengers touch
down. This paper describes about Aircell's ATG 4000 Once upon a time, Boeing had a brilliant idea to
high-speed Internet unit for business aviation which combine its satellite savvy and plane-building expertise
operates over an air-to-ground (ATG) link. It interfaces into a separate business division that would carry high-
with the company's network-neutral Axxess cabin speed signals from geostationary satellites into
system, which supports multiple channels of worldwide receivers that it would custom-fit into its own and
others' planes. While it was clear that satellite-based
voice and narrowband data service via the Iridium
Internet access was workable, the cost structure Boeing
satellite network had established was not.
Keywords As the industry shook itself out, and firms like
Panasonic Avionics and OnAir also tried to figure out
Air to ground system, swift broad band unit, data models that would work, the FCC finalized a plan to
interface unit, Antenna, Router, Transceiver. transform access in American skies.
1. Introduction The FCC had approved limited air-to-ground (ATG)
radiotelephone service in the 1980s for in-flight calling,
The airline industry is comprised of commercial and then offered licenses to six firms in 1990. Few
airlines, air cargo providers, business jets, and smaller launched commercially. In the end, only AirFone‚
general aviation aircraft. The primary interest of ultimately run by a division of Verizon‚ was left
commercial airliners is to increase contributions to their standing, charging dollars per minute for calls and low-
business. In addition they are likely to be attracted to speed dial-up data. Its use of a sliver of bandwidth was
the idea of a service that helps them differentiate inefficient in two directions: as an analog service, it
themselves from the competition. As winner of an was capable of handling only 10 calls at a time, making
exclusive FCC frequency license in 2006, Aircell has
www.ijert.org 1
International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT)
ISSN: 2278-0181
Vol. 2 Issue 3, March - 2013
poor use of the spectrum; by the end of its life, only modems together allowing double the bandwidth.
two to three calls were made on each flight. Between the protocol update, the antennas, and the two
modems the 9.8Mbps of raw bandwidth could produce
The FCC decided to auction off the 4MHz (in the four times the net throughput as the current system.
850MHz band) allotted to this service for digital air-to- That could net out to 8Mbps to the plane and 2 to 3
ground use to provide services to passengers and Mbps on the return loop.
airlines. It was assumed that Internet service would be
the primary purpose, supplemented by onboard cellular 3.2. Satellite servicing
base stations (so-called picocells) potentially providing
voice, text, and data links for hardware without built-in The Aircell broadband link uses direct air-to-ground
WiFi. But airlines might piggyback on the system for technology instead of satellites, and the benefit of this
non-critical communications, too. approach manifests itself all the way through the
system.
In 2006, the FCC created a wacky kind of auction in
which bids were accepted on different plans for Aircell doesn’t require expensive, geosynchronous
splitting the band up into pieces. The winner was the satellites to operate. It uses off-the-shelf wireless
most sensible offering: one firm paid for 3MHz and technology and significant elements of existing ground-
another for 1MHz. (The bandwidth was divided into based infrastructure (towers, backhaul, power sources,
1.5MHz and 0.5MHz paired uplink/downlink etc) already in use by consumer wireless companies.
channels.) The system requires very little power, so the aircraft
antenna is small, affordable, and easy to install.
Aircell won the larger chunk. The firm had spent nearly
20 years trying to convince the FCC to allocate air-to-
ground spectrum for provide greater competition and
3.3. In-flight internet across the globe
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better utility. From a more exact business perspective,
Aircell received a significant investment before the The biggest problem with using cell phones in planes,
auction by a private-investment firm that created a of course, is picking up the mobile signal. The answer
separate spectrum-holding company to bid on the is a picocell: a small base station designed to use
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auction. whatever backhaul is available to communicate with
the data network and billing systems on the ground. It's
the same concept as the femtocells carriers make
3. Aircell Technology available for the home, like the (erroneously named)
AT&T 3G MicroCell, but are more likely to be
Air-to-ground communications have a variety of sophisticated.
advantages over air-to-space connections. Aircell had
already built a network for general aviation (non-
commercial, private) phone and other services, so it had
4. Drive towards connectivity
experience. It was able to use existing cellular facilities
used by other telecoms with antennas pointing up
instead of around. Aircell could also own its equipment
instead of lease usage, as with satellites.
3.1. Air-to-ground technique
Aircell's air-to-ground technology makes use of as
much off-the-shelf gear as the company could manage.
The 1.5MHz available for uplink and downlink
transmission was close enough to the 1.25MHz used by
EVDO Rev. A to be a good match. The raw speed is
3.1Mbps downstream and 1.8Mbps upstream.
The antennas improve throughput, thus eking out more
bandwidth from existing signals, and bonding two
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International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT)
ISSN: 2278-0181
Vol. 2 Issue 3, March - 2013
5. Design Approach It makes use of as much off-the-shelf gear as
the company could manage
Aircell cabin communication system mainly consists
of: 5.2. Iridium Satcom Systems
1. Iridium antenna Iridium Satcom system has two filter options, one with
2. Two SBB (Swift broadband units) units (one single filter and one with dual filter.
as optional/standby)
3. CES system (Cabin Ethernet system),
4. Inmarsat Filters
5. Telecommunication router.
The Aircell airborne design approach is very different
than the traditional approach offfered by Boeing,
Airbus etc. Aircell’s model is dramatically less
complex, less expensive, and more flexible.
For optimum operation with Aircell Swift broadband,
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aircell offers a complementary Inmarsat Filter.
5.3. Cabin Telecommunication Router and
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Handsets
The standard Aircell Axxess system includes two
Iridium satellite communications channels for quality
voice and narrowband data services. Through its
integrated expansion ports, up to two additional Iridium
channels can be added to suit the operator’s needs. In
5.1. Swift Broadband Unit addition, through the system’s Ethernet port, operators
can add a high-speed Inmarsat connection on a plug-
In addition to the exclusive Aircell High Speed Internet and-play basis.
system has its satellite-based Swift Broadband solution
for global service. This product is powered by Thrane A cabin telecommunication router (CTR) provides high
& Thrane. speed, in-cabin wireless connectivity for Wi-Fi
equipments which include a full 802.11b/g Wi-Fi
The key benefits of Aircell broadband system are: “hotspot” which, when paired with a broadband
connection, can be used to operate personal laptops,
High speed data connection supports full-scale PDA’s (Personal digital assistant) and other Wi-Fi
internet surfing, email and corporate VPN devices in the cabin.
(Virtual private network) access in flight.
Speeds of up to 332 kb/s (IGA), 432 kb/s Aircell Axxess’ standard, FAA-certified handsets
(HGA) include large, color displays – an industry first – as well
Connection for up to six laptops (wired via as advanced noise cancelling technology and standard
RJ45) ear bud/headset jacks for clear, quiet calling. The
Low price installation due to lean design design philosophy is to allow an operator to equip an
No long downtime due to EASA (European airplane with Aircell Axxess, and then have it be very
Aviation Safety Agency) validation easy to add capabilities and even to change networks to
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International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT)
ISSN: 2278-0181
Vol. 2 Issue 3, March - 2013
take advantage of new technologies. This approach
makes customers not to worry about being locked into a
static set of capabilities. For example, an operator can
use the system’s two built-in Iridium channels today,
and plug in their choice of broadband connections as
faster and faster networks emerge in the future.”
5.4. Axxess Transceivers
The ATG 4000 is a modular add-on to the Aircell
Axxess cabin system. This integrated communications
suite provides Aircell High Speed Internet service via
the Aircell Network, as well as multiple channels of 7. Conclusion and Future scope
worldwide voice and narrowband data service via the
Iridium satellite network – in a network neutral For most owners, equipping a private aircraft with
package. telephone capability will be an expensive extravagance.
On the other hand, owners using light aircraft for
The ATG 5000 is the next version of the Aircell High business simply need the capability, regardless of cost.
Speed Internet service which continues to grow at a And if you need it, you'll have to pay for it. Internet
rapid rate in business aviation and on commercial access these days is potentially much cheaper for
airlines. The ATG 5000 is a very efficient installation airliners to introduce than other items such as more
for customers that want high speed Internet service personal space, bigger baggage allowances or better
aboard their aircraft on a standalone basis. In some entertainment.
cases, customers prefer to add high speed Internet
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service alongside their existing voice equipment – and The aircell axxess system is now used excessively in
in others, high speed Internet service is all they need. most of the commercial/business aircrafts like Embraer,
King-air, Boeing etc. With the successful flight in
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6. Placement of Aircell systems in Aircraft northern America, Itasca etc. now other manufacturer’s
in India are interested to utilize this facility.
The aircraft consists of different stations. The station
numbers may differ with respect to the seating’s, One of Aircell’s core design philosophies is CABIN
weight, type of aircraft etc. Usually the aircraft stations SYSTEM (including handsets, wireless hotspot, in-
are characterized as:
cabin wiring, etc) as separate from the LINKs (such as
Iridium, Inmarsat, Aircell broadband, etc) that connect
Cockpit
the cabin to the ground. “Network neural” means that
Aft bulkhead (Right/Left)
Rear bulkhead (Right/Left) an Aircell Axxess operator can select and install the
Passenger Compartment links that best suit their needs, and change anytime,
Baggage compartment without starting over.
Tail
With network neutrality, Aircell Axxess insulates from
The component placement is as below: changes in networks over time, and let passengers take
advantage of new technologies as they emerge. That
The TT-5006A Intermediate Gain Antenna entire operator needs to do is add a radio and an
(IGA) is installed on top of the tail. antenna and they can take full advantage of new
The TT-5016A High power Amplifier/Low network without changing any of their in-cabin
Noise Diplexer HLD is installed in the APU
equipment.
compartment
The TT-5040A Swift broadband Unit (SBU) is
installed in the Pressurized area (Avionics
Compartment)
Option for Wireless Access
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International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT)
ISSN: 2278-0181
Vol. 2 Issue 3, March - 2013
8. References
[1] Air-to-ground radio telephone services – URL:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airground_radiotelephone_servi
ce
[2] IATA, World Air Transport Statistics 48th Edition
Published 2004, Aviation week, Aerospace source book
2006-08-17
[3] Cutbirth, Steve, “Aircell Broadband Demonstration
Flights”, Powerpoint Presentation, April 2006, Aircell
[4] Blumenstein, Jack, “Broadband to the seat: Decoding it
All”, Powerpoint Presentation,April2005, Aircell
[5] Aircell Systems – URL:
www.Aircellsystems.com
[6] Technology primer for Business Aviation, Published
March2007
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