ubiquitous communications

In June, the European Space Agency (ESA) published the report ‘Space for Automotive: Use Cases and Market Opportunities’. This report looks at how modern technology is transforming the automotive industry, and at the role the space industry can play. In particular, the report talks about the importance of reliable connectivity for modern vehicles, especially self-driving vehicles.

We had the pleasure of attending the Farnborough Airshow 2022 this July: the first time the airshow had taken place in four years. The event was held from 18 to 22 July, and Darwin went along with ESA and UKSA to demonstrate some of the things we’ve achieved together.

In November 2021, Darwin and ESA collaborated on a connectivity test at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus. We spoke to Darwin’s Rodrigo Barreto and ESA’s Antonio Franchi to get some insight into this test.

In July 2021, Darwin performed a live demonstration of its ubiquitous communications technology in Cornwall. By switching seamlessly between satellite and terrestrial networks, this technology enables devices or vehicles to stay connected even in areas with variable coverage.

In this post, Rodrigo Barreto, Darwin’s lead architect, gives some background on the demonstration and talks about what we learnt from it.

David Owens, Darwin’s head of technical trials and chief pilot, went on O2 Business’s Blue Door podcast this week to talk about the environmental benefits of connected transportation.