KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq: KVHI), a global leader in mobile connectivity and inertial navigation systems based in Middletown, Rhode Island, has been named an Official Supplier of New York Yacht Club American Magic, a Challenger for the 36th America’s Cup. KVH has installed advanced satellite-based and cellular-based communications equipment for the team’s chase boats in order to facilitate high-speed data transmissions. In addition, KVH is providing high-performance fiber optic gyro (FOG)-based sensors to aid in performance metrics for the team’s race boats.
“We are proud to support
New York Yacht Club American Magic in its challenge for the America’s Cup,”
said Martin Kits van Heyningen, Chief Executive Officer of KVH. “There is
special meaning for us since the America’s Cup is part of KVH’s history, with
our very first product developed for a 12 Metre yacht preparing for the 1980
America’s Cup.”
“We are excited to be working with maritime technology innovator KVH and have
their products on our fleet of chase boats,” said Terry Hutchinson, Skipper and
Executive Director of American Magic. “The ability to have reliable data
transmissions contributes to our competitive edge.”
The connectivity equipment KVH installed on American Magic’s chase boats
includes: the TracPhone® LTE-1, an ultra-compact marine-grade
system powered by LTE-Advanced network technology providing service as far as
20 miles offshore; and the satellite-based TracPhone V3-HTS providing satellite
communications at data speeds of up to 5 Mbps down/2 Mbps up. The V3-HTS is
designed for KVH’s mini-VSAT BroadbandSM HTS network, which
utilizes Intelsat’s FlexMaritime service to deliver global multi-layered
satellite coverage. The two systems will be configured for least-cost routing,
ensuring uninterrupted and cost-effective data delivery via automatic switching
between LTE and satellite services.
KVH’s connectivity equipment will be used by American Magic in such training locations as Newport, Rhode Island and Pensacola, Florida, and in racing venues that include Cagliari, Italy, on the island of Sardinia, where the first America’s Cup World Series race is scheduled to take place in April 2020. The 36th America’s Cup presented by Prada is scheduled for March 2021 in Auckland, New Zealand.
KVH is also providing American Magic with high-performance FOG-based inertial measurement units (IMUs) that the team will use to measure various performance metrics of the race boats.
KVH’s history with the America’s Cup goes back to 1978, when the syndicate for France III – a 12 Metre yacht preparing
for the 1980 America’s Cup challenger series in Newport – asked engineer and
sailing enthusiast A.H. Kits van Heyningen to develop a yacht racing computer.
Four years later, Sailcomp was introduced, giving the marine world its first
digital fluxgate compass—and a start for KVH Industries. Over the years, KVH’s
inertial sensors have also been part of America’s Cup technology advancements;
KVH’s CNS-5000 fiber optic gyro-based navigation system was on board the AC45s
and AC72s in the 34th America’s Cup and on board the ACC foiling catamarans of
the 35th America’s Cup.
KVH is a mobile tech innovator that provides connectivity solutions for
commercial maritime, leisure marine, and land mobile applications on vessels
and vehicles, including the award-winning TracPhone and TracVision® product
lines, the global mini-VSAT Broadband network, and AgilePlans® Connectivity
as a Service (CaaS). A leading innovator for assured navigation and autonomous
accuracy using high-performance sensors and integrated inertial systems, KVH’s
FOGs and FOG-based IMUs are in use today in a wide variety of applications
ranging from optical, antenna, and sensor stabilization systems to mobile
mapping solutions and autonomous platforms and cars.
To learn more about KVH Industries, Inc.’s support of American Magic, visit https://landing.kvh.com/americanmagic.
