Recognizing sailors’ desire to use smartphones at sea, French-based defense technology company Thales has developed a new shipboard information distribution system dubbed COMTICS.
COMTICS is a multimedia communication device resembling a smartphone that allows naval personnel permanent shipboard mobility and connectivity with all types of military radios, all without compromising security.
According to Thales, the system provides services ranging from video and data transfers to web browsing and social media, if the operational situation allows, and the ability to chat with colleagues.
Thales has designed COMTICS on the basis of its NGIN (Naval Voice Over IP) and FOCON IP (Fibre Optical Communication Network) solutions, which are proven at sea and have been adopted by 15 navies to date.
To ensure service availability even in the event of combat damage, COMTICS is built on a redundant all-IP architecture to ensure continuity of operations. The system can support up to 3,000 simultaneous calls.
Thales says the COMTICS is the only product on the market to offer mobile services for naval personnel on deployment, enabling crew members to stay in touch with family and friends.