tracking + voice for iditarod 2009 - pr newswire

Tracking + Voice for Iditarod 2009

What is Iridium Satellite?

Proprietary and Confidential

• First and remains the only GLOBAL VOICE & DATA SATELLITE NETWORK with communications capabilities from anywhere to anywhere on the planet

Only communications system that will work above and below 70˚ North or South latitude and over the entire state of Alaska

• Worldwide network of 66 satellites with in-orbit spares• Independent of terrestrial infrastructure• Highly reliable communication system offering uniform operation• Cross –linked architecture provides redundancy• As of December, Iridium’s subscriber count

was at approximately 320,000.

Iridium Satellite - Devices

Shipboard/Rig/Fixed Equipment

• Easy to install• No moving parts• Supports prepaid calling

Satellite Handheld Phone

• Works anywhere in the world

• Just like dialing a GSM phone

Short Burst Data

• Environmental monitoring• Pipeline monitoring• Distress and alarm• GPS compatible • Asset tracking


Iridium is an Essential Part of the Global Communications GridKey component of many mission critical applications.

Iridium customer base is growing and diversifying.Embedded in day-to-day operations of government & industry.

Maritime Aviation GovernmentDefense

Handsets M2M(Asset Tracking &

Telemetry)Voice & data

communications in international waters

Voice & data communications in the

sky

Voice & data communications in-theater

Commercial voicesubscribers

Low-latency and low-cost critical global applications

Crew callingSSASLRIT

VMS Fisheries Man-overboard

Flight followingCockpit communications

Air safety services

Over-the-horizonBlue force trackingUnattended sensors

Disaster/emergency/ rescue operationsIn-Network callingRegional pricingNetwork Quality

Guarantee

150+ applications Fleet managementContainer tracking

Oil and gas, TelemetryOceanographic data

#2 position Largest commercial MSS provider to DoD

Fastest growing business segment

The only global handset in the world#1 Position

10

Iridium Voice Services at the Iditarod


• Roadpost:

• Iridium service provider since 1999

• Experienced provider for sporting events

• Iridium phones for Iditarod staff

• Safety and operations• Custom Iridium phone rental

kits• Pre-labeled with user

names• Preloaded Iditarod-shared

address book• Pre-printed business cards

with user’s number

Iridium Satellite – Data Service

• Narrowband data service• 2.4 Kbps• Two way (duplex) service• Small modem device

• Circuit switched data service• 9.6 Kbps

• Fax• Short Message Service (SMS)• Short-Burst Data (SBD)• Iridium OpenPort™

• Up to 128 Kbps• 3 Voice Channels

• Larger and faster growth in the mobile data sector • More than any other vertical market – 150%+

P

Investing for the Future: M2M


0

2,000,000

4,000,000

6,000,000

8,000,000

10,000,000

12,000,000

2005 2006 2007 2008

SBD Traffic (Kbytes)

106% CAGR

• 78 Partners in key market segments• Automatic Vehicle Location – 23• Maritime – 14• Aviation - 14• Asset Monitoring – 7• Government – 7• Oil & Gas – 7• Environmental/

Scientific -6

8

Iridium Data Benefits Summary

• Strong feature set:• Global, real time satellite network availability• Low latency• Optimal for messages up to several hundred bytes• Reliable acknowledged network protocol• Simple device and network interfaces• Simple, small antenna

• Single global agreement with network owner• No roaming

• Single network access point• Single device – worldwide operation capabilities• Ease of hardware and antenna integration• Iridium Data- Deployed in hundreds of Mission Critical

applications

Iridium. Everywhere: DATA


9Commercial Short-Burst Data Traffic – 1 month…

• Iridium offers businesses visibility and status updates • Enables tracking/monitoring everything from trucks, ships, cars

and packages to containers, wind farms, people, sleds and dogs!

• Iridium SBD customers include:

Tracking Via Iridium


The Iditarod Trail CommitteeConocoPhillipsSchlumbergerAustralian Rail Track CorporationRoyal Canadian Mounted PoliceHydro OneAir Dat

Continental AirlinesPort Authority of NY & NJBritish Ministry of DefenseNOAAHorizon LinesUK Royal National Lifeboat InstitutionFedExAnd many more…

Iridium Enterprise Solutions Translate Into Iditarod Tracking

• Iditarod Trail Committee recognized that knowledge is power

• Leveraging the value of real-time data

• Increases:• Efficiency• Fan involvement• Security• Safety

IonEarth Supports a Number of Successful Racing Applications Via Iridium SBD

• Canada’s Cup, Trans-Superior, Chicago to Mackinac, Port Huron to Mackinac

• Yukon River – Continental Navigation 2007• Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race 2008 & 2009

• Baja 1000, 500, 250; Primm 300; Terrible’s Town, BITD Vegas to Reno

How Iridium-Based Ion Earth Tracking Works


• Long-term, reliable operation in extreme cold weather (-40F)• Batteries that last the entire duration of the race (16 days) at sub-zero

temperatures• Light weight and simple to deploy (30 oz., no external cabling)• Initial reluctance of some mushers to reveal their movements

As a result, in the first year, deployment was limited and purely voluntary

• Camera crews, some aircraft and a small number of checkpoint personnel used field tracking systems to monitor mushers remotely

Use by camera crews was highly successfulCameramen deployed on snowmobiles were able to better plan shots due to improved situational awarenessThis was especially useful at night for shots of mushers during rest stopsHelicopter camera crews were better able to plan flight time as a result of having regularly updated bearing and distance to mushers on the trail – ultimately saving time and money

Technical Hurdles of 2008 Iditarod

• Voluntary use of trackers during the 2008 race helped dispel perception of competitive advantage/disadvantage as a result of positional knowledge or weight.

Lance Mackey carried 30oz of IonEarth equipment and 8 lbs of Discovery cameras and still won the race.

• Trackers were deployed in nylon pouches secured to sleds.


• Supplied trail breaking crew with a tracker so that race organizers could see their progress along the trail.

The trail breaking crews consist of three or four snow mobiles pulling trail groomers and transporting personnel capable of clearing the trail of obstacles such as fallen trees. They also build bridges across rivers that have not frozen.

Technical Hurdles of 2008 Iditarod

• IonEarth tracking systems are now mandatory equipment for all 70 mushers participating in the 2009 Iditarod (as well as the Junior Iditarod) • Unit must be on any sled they use during the course of the race

• Tracker mounting brackets supplied to mushers in advance of the race to simplify tracker deployment at the start• Mounting brackets are available for multiple sleds in the event of a sled

change

• Mounting bracket made of stainless steel and the tracker is secured to it with polypropylene straps using D-rings and Velcro

• IonEarth Web tracking maps are better integrated into the Iditarod Website this year. There are actually three:

New for 2009


Small one on the front page of the Iditarod site,Teaser map showing 6 randomly selected mushers from the lower half of the pack and Full-featured tracking site available by subscription

New for 2009• Trackers consume less power• Have the capacity to transmit at higher rates for longer periods of time• Improved positional accuracy• Units at checkpoints boast new features as well:

1. Checkpoints can now anticipate musher arrivals using ruggedized Trimble PDAs connected via Bluetooth to an IonEarth tracker.

2. Map displays of the course with mushers’ positions, speed, coordinates, race mile, distance and heading on the PDA.

3. Checkers at select locations will be outfitted with tracker and PDA systems that allow them to collect musher entry and exit details including time in,


time out, number of dogs in, number of dogs out and transmit them via SBD directly to the Iditarod Website.

4. Because the timing and positional information is automatically gathered, the checker only has to select a musher from a list and how many dogs he came in or left with. Press send, and it’s on the Website. This saves considerable time and effort.

New for 2009• Individuals can either carry the tracker with them in a backpack or

just place it somewhere within 50 feet of their location. All communication between the PDA and tracker is wireless via Bluetooth.

• Checkpoint personnel will have the ability to send text messages through their trackers via IonEarth’s SRT system.

• Camera crews will also be able to send text messages.• For example, the crew flying in the helicopter can relay information

directly back to Iditarod’s communication hub in Anchorage.



For Additional Information, Please Visit:

• Iridium www.Iridium.com• Ion Earth www.IonEarth.com• Roadpost www.RoadPost.com• Multimedia News Release:

www.prnewswire.com/mnr/iridium/35335/

http://www.iridium.com/

http://www.ionearth.com/

http://www.roadpost.com/

http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/iridium/35335/

tracking + voice for iditarod 2009 - pr newswire

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