Marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay

Abstract

The invention relates to a marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay, and the system is provided with a plurality of satellite communication modules and a plurality of inter-ship wireless communication modules, and the satellite communication modules can achieve the data transmission between ships and satellites. The inter-ship wireless communication module can collect the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on the ship where the inter-ship wireless communication module is located and complete data transmission between the ship where the inter-ship wireless communication module is located and other ships, and on the basis, all ships with the satellite link quality higher than a specified value serve as relay nodes through arrangement of the control module. And then the relay service ships of each relay node are distributed through an intelligent scheduling algorithm, so that all the relay service ships of the relay node carry out data transmission with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node. Therefore, the number of ships directly occupying a satellite link at the same time is greatly reduced, and the bandwidth pressure of satellite communication is relieved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of satellite communication technology, and in particular to a marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay. Background Art

[0002] Currently, due to the lack of ground-based communications infrastructure in the vast ocean, ships primarily rely on satellite links for data communication with the outside world. However, traditional ocean satellite communications have numerous shortcomings: First, satellite bandwidth resources are limited. When a single ship monopolizes the link, the data transmission rate is limited. Simultaneous communication by multiple ships increases the satellite load, leading to bandwidth congestion and increased communication latency. Second, satellite communications are expensive and bandwidth utilization is poor. Even transmitting small amounts of data requires establishing a complete satellite link, which incurs significant overhead. Furthermore, the ocean environment is complex and ever-changing. Severe weather or sea conditions can interfere with satellite signals, causing link instability or even interruption, impacting timely communication between ships and land.

[0003] To address the above issues, the prior art discloses a maritime communication mode that uses a ship self-organizing network (SANET) to enable neighboring ships to communicate directly via radio or microwave to share data locally and reduce dependence on satellites.

[0004] However, current maritime ad hoc communications and satellite systems are often independent of each other and lack an effective coordination mechanism. This maritime communication model has not yet formed a mature solution that allows multiple ships to dynamically coordinate, relay each other's data, and jointly use satellite link resources. As a result, satellite bandwidth utilization is low, communication load is heavy, and there is a lack of flexible scheduling. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is how to overcome the technical problems of low satellite bandwidth utilization, heavy communication load and lack of flexible scheduling in the existing technology. In order to solve this technical problem, the present invention provides an ocean satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay.

[0006] The present invention provides a marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay, comprising: Multiple satellite communication modules are installed on multiple ships in a one-to-one manner to perform data transmission between the ships and the satellites; a plurality of inter-ship wireless communication modules, arranged on a plurality of ships in a one-to-one manner and communicating with the satellite communication modules on the ships on which they are located, for collecting satellite link quality indicators of the satellite communication modules on the ships on which they are located and performing data transmission between the ships on which they are located and other ships; A control module is provided on a certain ship and simultaneously communicates with the inter-ship wireless communication module and all the satellite communication modules on the ship. The control module is configured to determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication modules on each ship obtained by the control module, use all ships with satellite link quality higher than the specified value as relay nodes, block data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite, and then allocate relay service ships to each relay node through an intelligent scheduling algorithm so that all relay service ships of the relay node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node.

[0007] The disclosed marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay addresses the technical deficiencies of the prior art by providing multiple satellite communication modules and multiple inter-ship wireless communication modules, which are installed one-to-one on multiple ships. The satellite communication modules can perform data transmission between ships and satellites, while the inter-ship wireless communication modules can collect satellite link quality indicators from the satellite communication modules on their respective ships and complete data transmission between their respective ships and other ships, thereby meeting the requirements for information transmission between satellites and ships, and between ships. Furthermore, a control module is configured to designate all ships with satellite link quality exceeding a specified value as relay nodes, blocking data transmission between remaining ships and satellites. Subsequently, an intelligent scheduling algorithm is used to assign relay service ships to each relay node, ensuring that all relay service ships of the relay node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication modules of the relay node. Through collaborative forwarding of data transmission between ships, the number of ships directly occupying satellite links at the same time is significantly reduced, alleviating the pressure on satellite communication bandwidth and enabling more efficient utilization of limited satellite resources. Moreover, since the control module uses an intelligent scheduling algorithm to dynamically optimize according to network conditions, it ensures that data can be transmitted along the optimal path regardless of whether the satellite link is unobstructed or restricted, thereby improving the overall throughput and reliability of communications. It not only has strong scalability and adaptability, and can adapt to ship networks of different numbers and distributions and changeable sea conditions, but also can achieve a significant improvement in the performance of maritime broadband communications without the need for new satellites or base station hardware, overcoming the technical problems of low satellite bandwidth utilization, heavy communication load and lack of flexible scheduling in existing technologies, and has broad application prospects and practical value.

[0008] In one possible embodiment, the data transmission includes data reception and data transmission, and the content of the data transmission between ships includes the location information of the data-sending ship and the satellite link quality indicator of the satellite communication module on the ship; thereby helping to ensure that each ship can obtain the location information of all ships communicating with it, ensuring the efficient operation of the intelligent scheduling algorithm allocated by the control module.

[0009] In one possible embodiment, all of the inter-ship wireless communication modules include a collection device, an encryption device, and a decryption device adapted to the encryption device that communicate with each other. The collection device is used to collect the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on the ship where it is located. The encryption device is used to encrypt the content of data required for transmission between the ship where it is located and other ships and the satellite link quality index, so as to transmit the ciphertext to the decryption device on the other ship; thereby providing a secure communication mechanism, all data relayed through other ships are encrypted and integrity checked, preventing potential eavesdropping and tampering, and at the same time, through anti-interference design, the network has stronger resistance to channel interference.

[0010] In a possible implementation, the encryption algorithm executed by the encryption device is a block encryption algorithm or an elliptic curve encryption algorithm; thereby, while ensuring information security, encryption and decryption efficiency can be improved.

[0011] In a possible implementation, the control module includes: a route optimization device, communicating simultaneously with the decryption device and all the satellite communication modules on the ship, configured to determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication modules on each ship, use all ships with satellite link quality higher than the specified value as relay nodes, and block data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite; a traffic scheduling device, in communication with the route optimization device, and configured to allocate relay service vessels to each relay node through an intelligent scheduling algorithm, so that all relay service vessels of the relay node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node; This solution comprehensively considers the satellite signal strength of each ship node, the distance to adjacent ships, and the link quality to obtain the optimal relay solution.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the route optimization apparatus is configured to perform the following steps: A1: Obtaining the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on each ship from the decryption device; A2: determining the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on each ship; A3: All ships with satellite link quality higher than a specified value are used as relay nodes, and data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite is blocked, and an operation instruction is sent to the traffic scheduling device; A4: Determine whether the time interval between the current time and the time when the relay node was last selected is not less than the sampling period. If yes, then go back to step A1; If not, proceed to the next step; A5: Determine whether the network structure composed of the inter-ship wireless communication modules has changed based on the content of the data received by the decryption device. If yes, then go back to step A1; If not, the process returns to step A4.

[0013] The above process ensures the dynamic optimality of relay nodes and enables the network to adapt to link quality fluctuations caused by ship movement and environmental changes.

[0014] In a possible implementation, the content of the operation instruction includes the location information of the selected relay node and the characteristic information of the satellite communication module; thereby ensuring the efficient operation of the traffic scheduling device and realizing the reasonable scheduling of data transmission resources.

[0015] In a possible implementation, the traffic scheduling device is configured to perform the following steps: B1: sorting all the relay nodes according to the quality of their satellite links, and taking the relay node with the highest ranking as the current node; B2: Determine the radiation radius of the current node based on the satellite link quality of the current node, and use all ships that are less than the radiation radius from the current node and are not selected as relay nodes as relay service ships of the current node; B3: enabling all relay service ships of the current node to transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the current node; B4, determine whether all the relay nodes have been traversed, If yes, then after receiving the operation command again, the process returns to step B1; If not, the next relay node sorted in step B1 is used as the current node, and then the process returns to step B2.

[0016] Through intelligent scheduling in the above manner, relay nodes can efficiently arrange uplink transmissions from multiple ships, making full use of the satellite link "pipeline" without congestion, while reducing data collisions and retransmissions and improving overall throughput. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay disclosed in an embodiment of the present application; Figure 2 This is a flowchart of the operation of the route optimization device disclosed in the embodiments of this application; Figure 3 This is a flow chart of the operation of the traffic scheduling device disclosed in the embodiments of this application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] First, those skilled in the art should understand that these embodiments are merely used to explain the technical principles of the embodiments of the present application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the embodiments of the present application. Those skilled in the art may adjust them as needed to suit specific application scenarios.

[0019] In the description of the embodiments of the present application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "communication connection" and "communication" should be understood in a broad sense, that is, referring to a connection method that can transmit information to each other. For example, it can be a circuit connection through a conductive wire, or an electrical connection through a radio signal channel (channel), or a combination of the two.

[0020] In the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may mean that the first and second features are in direct contact, or that the first and second features are in indirect contact through an intermediate medium. Furthermore, a first feature being "above," "above," and "above" a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below," "below," and "below" a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0021] The present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0022] See also Figure 1 This embodiment discloses a marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay. The satellite communication system includes multiple satellite communication modules arranged on multiple ships in a one-to-one manner, multiple inter-ship wireless communication modules arranged on multiple ships in a one-to-one manner, and a control module arranged on a certain ship. The inter-ship wireless communication modules communicate with the satellite communication modules on the ship on which they are located. The control module simultaneously communicates with the inter-ship wireless communication modules on the ship on which they are located and all the satellite communication modules. The satellites, multiple satellite communication modules, multiple inter-ship wireless communication modules, and the control module form a communication network structure to enable data to flow between the satellites and these modules, ensuring that all parties can receive data transmitted in the communication network structure.

[0023] In this satellite communication system, the satellite communication module establishes communication with the satellite and is used to perform data transmission between the ship and the satellite. Data transmission includes data reception and data transmission, allowing the ship to communicate with the satellite via the satellite link, achieving two-way data flow. In this embodiment, this module is a satellite antenna module.

[0024] In this satellite communication system, the inter-vessel wireless communication module collects the satellite link quality indicator from the satellite communication module on its own vessel and transmits data between its own vessel and other vessels. This inter-vessel data transmission includes the location of the sending vessel and the satellite link quality indicator from the satellite communication module on each vessel.

[0025] Please continue to see Figure 1 In this embodiment, all inter-vessel wireless communication modules include a data collection device, an encryption device, and a decryption device compatible with the encryption device. The data collection device is used to collect satellite link quality indicators from the satellite communication modules on its own vessel. The encryption device is used to encrypt the data and satellite link quality indicators required for transmission between its own vessel and other vessels, and transmit the ciphertext to the decryption device on the other vessel, which then invokes the decryption device for decryption. In this embodiment, the encryption device uses a block cipher or an elliptic curve cryptography algorithm.

[0026] In this satellite communication system, the control module is configured to determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality indicators of the satellite communication modules on each ship it obtains, and all ships with satellite link quality higher than the specified value are used as relay nodes, and data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite is blocked. Subsequently, the relay service ships of each relay node are allocated through an intelligent scheduling algorithm, so that all relay service ships of the relay node can transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node.

[0027] Please continue to see Figure 1 In this embodiment, the control module includes a route optimization device and a traffic scheduling device, wherein the route optimization device communicates with the decryption device and all satellite communication modules on the ship at the same time, and the traffic scheduling device communicates with the route optimization device.

[0028] See also Figure 2 In the control module, the route optimization device is configured to determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality indicators obtained from the satellite communication modules on each ship. It then uses all ships with satellite link quality above a specified value as relay nodes, and blocks data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite. In this embodiment, the route optimization device is configured to perform the following steps:

[0029] A1: Obtain the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on each ship from the decryption device.

[0030] A2: Determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on each ship.

[0031] A3: All ships with satellite link quality higher than the specified value are designated as relay nodes, and data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite is blocked. An operation instruction is sent to the traffic scheduling device. The content of the operation instruction includes the location information of the selected relay node and the characteristic information of the satellite communication module.

[0032] A4: Determine whether the time interval between the current time and the time when the relay node was last selected is not less than the sampling period. If yes, go back to step A1; If not, proceed to the next step.

[0033] A5: Determine whether the network structure composed of the inter-ship wireless communication modules has changed based on the content of the data received by the decryption device. If yes, go back to step A1; If not, the process returns to step A4.

[0034] It should be noted that in step A5, the network structure composed of inter-ship wireless communication modules will change when new inter-ship wireless communication modules are added or reduced. At this time, the relay node needs to be reselected, and then step A1 needs to be executed again.

[0035] See also Figure 3 In the control module, the traffic scheduling device is configured to allocate the relay service ships of each relay node through an intelligent scheduling algorithm, so that all the relay service ships of the relay node can transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node. Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, the traffic scheduling device is configured to perform the following steps:

[0036] B1: Sort all relay nodes according to the quality of their satellite links (they can be sorted in ascending order or descending order of satellite link quality), and use the relay node with the highest ranking as the current node.

[0037] B2: Determine the radiation radius of the current node based on the satellite link quality of the current node, and use all ships that are not selected as relay nodes and are located within the radiation radius of the current node as relay service ships for the current node. The radiation radius of the node may be determined such that the greater the satellite link quality, the larger the radiation radius of the node.

[0038] B3: All relay service ships of the current node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the current node.

[0039] B4, determine whether to traverse all relay nodes, If yes, then after receiving the run command again, go back to step B1; If not, the next relay node sorted in step B1 is used as the current node, and then the process returns to step B2.

[0040] The following further illustrates the technical effectiveness of this satellite communication system. In this example, assume that two ships, A and B, are located in the open ocean. At a certain moment, the satellite signal from Ship A is detected to be stronger, while the signal from Ship B is weaker and has a large amount of data to transmit. Based on the operational performance of the control module, Ship A is selected as the relay node. At this point, Ship B's data is first transmitted to Ship A, which then forwards it to the satellite. In this scenario, Ship B's data has a greater transmission weight, ensuring that Ship B's large data stream is uploaded to the satellite at a reasonable speed from Ship A, while Ship A's own data is interspersed with the data. Measured results show that the use of cooperative relay significantly improves the data transmission rate and success rate for Ship B. Compared to using satellites directly, latency is reduced by approximately 30%, and bandwidth utilization is increased by approximately 25%.

[0041] The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay disclosed in this embodiment addresses the technical shortcomings of the existing technology by providing multiple satellite communication modules and multiple inter-ship wireless communication modules, which are installed on multiple ships in a one-to-one manner. The satellite communication modules can perform data transmission between ships and satellites, while the inter-ship wireless communication modules can collect satellite link quality indicators from the satellite communication modules on their respective ships and complete data transmission between their respective ships and other ships, thereby meeting the requirements for information transmission between satellites and ships, and between ships. Furthermore, a control module is configured to designate all ships with satellite link quality above a specified value as relay nodes, blocking data transmission between other ships and satellites. Subsequently, an intelligent scheduling algorithm is used to assign relay service ships to each relay node, ensuring that all relay service ships of the relay node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication modules of the relay node. Through collaborative forwarding of data transmission between ships, the number of ships directly occupying satellite links at the same time is significantly reduced, easing the pressure on satellite communication bandwidth and enabling more efficient utilization of limited satellite resources. Moreover, since the control module uses an intelligent scheduling algorithm to dynamically optimize according to network conditions, it ensures that data can be transmitted along the optimal path regardless of whether the satellite link is unobstructed or restricted, thereby improving the overall throughput and reliability of communications. It not only has strong scalability and adaptability, and can adapt to ship networks of different numbers and distributions and changeable sea conditions, but also can achieve a significant improvement in the performance of maritime broadband communications without the need for new satellites or base station hardware, overcoming the technical problems of low satellite bandwidth utilization, heavy communication load and lack of flexible scheduling in existing technologies, and has broad application prospects and practical value.

[0042] In the description of the embodiments of the present application, it should be noted that in the description of the present application, terms such as "inside" and "outside" indicating directions or positional relationships are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. This is only for the convenience of description and does not indicate or imply that the device or component must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, it cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0043] In the description of the present application, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "in the present embodiment", "specific example", or "some examples" means that the specific features, mechanisms, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In this specification, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, mechanisms, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner. In addition, those skilled in the art may combine and combine different embodiments or examples described in this specification and the features of different embodiments or examples, unless they are mutually inconsistent.

[0044] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present application should be included in the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay, characterized in that: include: Multiple satellite communication modules are installed on multiple ships in a one-to-one manner to perform data transmission between the ships and the satellites; a plurality of inter-ship wireless communication modules, arranged on a plurality of ships in a one-to-one manner and communicating with the satellite communication modules on the ships on which they are located, for collecting satellite link quality indicators of the satellite communication modules on the ships on which they are located and performing data transmission between the ships on which they are located and other ships; A control module is provided on a certain ship and simultaneously communicates with the inter-ship wireless communication module and all the satellite communication modules on the ship. The control module is configured to determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication modules on each ship obtained by the control module, use all ships with satellite link quality higher than the specified value as relay nodes, block data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite, and then allocate relay service ships to each relay node through an intelligent scheduling algorithm so that all relay service ships of the relay node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node.

2. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 1, characterized in that: The data transmission includes data reception and data transmission, and the content of the data transmission between ships includes the position information of the data transmitting ship and the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on the ship.

3. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 2, characterized in that: All of the inter-ship wireless communication modules include a collection device, an encryption device and a decryption device adapted to the encryption device for communicating with each other. The collection device is used to collect the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on the ship where it is located. The encryption device is used to encrypt the content of data required for transmission between the ship where it is located and other ships and the satellite link quality index, so as to transmit the ciphertext to the decryption device on the other ship.

4. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 3, characterized in that: The encryption algorithm executed by the encryption device is a block encryption algorithm or an elliptic curve encryption algorithm.

5. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The control module includes: a route optimization device, communicating simultaneously with the decryption device and all the satellite communication modules on the ship, configured to determine the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication modules on each ship, use all ships with satellite link quality higher than the specified value as relay nodes, and block data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite; The traffic scheduling device communicates with the route optimization device and is configured to allocate relay service ships of each relay node through an intelligent scheduling algorithm so that all relay service ships of the relay node transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the relay node.

6. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 5, characterized in that: The route optimization device is configured to perform the following steps: A1: Obtaining the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on each ship from the decryption device; A2: determining the satellite link quality of each ship based on the satellite link quality index of the satellite communication module on each ship; A3: All ships with satellite link quality higher than a specified value are used as relay nodes, and data transmission between the remaining ships and the satellite is blocked, and an operation instruction is sent to the traffic scheduling device; A4: Determine whether the time interval between the current time and the time when the relay node was last selected is not less than the sampling period. If yes, then go back to step A1; If not, proceed to the next step; A5: Determine whether the network structure composed of the inter-ship wireless communication modules has changed based on the content of the data received by the decryption device. If yes, then go back to step A1; If not, the process returns to step A4.

7. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 6, characterized in that: The content of the operation instruction includes the location information of the selected relay node and the characteristic information of the satellite communication module.

8. The marine satellite communication system based on ship cooperative relay according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that: The flow scheduling device is configured to perform the following steps: B1: sorting all the relay nodes according to the quality of their satellite links, and taking the relay node with the highest ranking as the current node; B2: Determine the radiation radius of the current node based on the satellite link quality of the current node, and use all ships that are less than the radiation radius from the current node and are not selected as relay nodes as relay service ships of the current node; B3: Instruct all relay service ships of the current node to transmit data with the satellite through the satellite communication module of the current node; B4, determine whether all the relay nodes have been traversed, If yes, then after receiving the operation command again, the process returns to step B1; If not, the next relay node sorted in step B1 is used as the current node, and then the process returns to step B2.

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