KR-102961210-B1 - SYSTEM FOR COMMUNICATION RELAY USING RELAY PATHS BETWEEN SHIPS IN A MARITIME WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORK

KR102961210B1KR 102961210 B1KR102961210 B1KR 102961210B1KR-102961210-B1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a communication relay system utilizing a relay path between vessels in a maritime wireless communication network. The problem to be solved is to enable a vessel to independently determine communication roles, such as base stations and relay nodes, and to autonomously configure and maintain a relay path with adjacent vessels in order to overcome the coverage limitations of the maritime communication network. For example, a communication relay system utilizing a relay relay path between ships in a wireless communication network is disclosed, comprising: a node state classification module that determines whether a ship communication terminal can directly connect with a base station and classifies it into a node state suitable for a communication role according to the determination result; a node state broadcast module that, when a node is classified into a state capable of connecting to a base station by the node state classification module, transmits current node state information to an adjacent ship communication terminal within a preset radio wave radius so that it is recognized as a relay node; a relay relay path configuration module that evaluates the current node state information of an adjacent node and forms a relay relay path composed of adjacent nodes satisfying preset node selection criteria conditions; a data relay transmission module that maintains a connection with a central control system by relaying data in multiple stages along the relay relay path; and a path recovery control module that searches for a replaceable node and reconstructs the relay relay path when an abnormal state of a node constituting the relay relay path is detected.

Inventors

박상호
박진성
김재용
임영욱

Assignees

주식회사 파도

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20250718

Claims (10)

A node state classification module that determines whether a ship communication terminal can directly connect with a base station and classifies it into a node state suitable for a communication role based on the determination result; A node status broadcast module that, when a node is classified into a state capable of base station connection by the above node status classification module, transmits current node status information to an adjacent vessel communication terminal within a preset radio wave radius so that it is recognized as a relay node; A relay relay path configuration module that evaluates the current node status information of adjacent nodes and forms a relay relay path composed of adjacent nodes that satisfy preset node selection criteria conditions; A data relay transmission module that maintains a connection with a central control system by relaying and transmitting data in multiple stages along a relay path; A path recovery control module that searches for a replaceable node and reconstructs the relay path when an abnormal state is detected in a node constituting the relay path; and It includes a policy-based routing control module that controls the process of forming a relay path according to preset node selection criteria conditions when forming a relay path between vessels, and The above policy-based routing control module is, A node policy evaluation unit that evaluates the operational characteristics of each adjacent node based on preset policy conditions; A policy filtering unit that excludes nodes that do not satisfy predefined policy conditions among the policy conditions evaluated by the above node policy evaluation unit; A policy-based path control unit linked with the relay relay path configuration module to configure a relay relay path targeting nodes selected by the policy filtering unit; A node authentication execution unit that performs a mutual authentication procedure according to a preset authentication policy between nodes within a relay relay path configured based on nodes evaluated by the node policy evaluation unit; and A communication relay system using a relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a data encryption execution unit that applies encryption processing based on a secure transmission protocol to the entire relay path section after the above-mentioned node authentication execution unit performs authentication.
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In Article 1, A communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized in that the final node of the relay relay path transmits and receives data to and from the central control system and further includes a central control system linkage module that reports the status of the entire relay relay path in real time.
In Paragraph 4, The above central control system interlocking module is, A path state information collection unit that collects at least one path state among the total path information of a relay relay path, each node identifier, relay sequence, and data transmission delay time; A path status information format conversion unit that converts path status information collected by the above path status information collection unit into a format receivable by the central control system; A data transmission unit that transmits path status information converted by the above path status information format conversion unit to a central control system through a base station; and A communication relay system using a relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a control command distribution unit that transmits a command or control request received from a central control system to each node of the corresponding relay path.
In Article 1, The above node state classification module is, A signal reception sensitivity evaluation unit that measures signal sensitivity received from a base station; A base station connection determination unit that determines whether a connection with a base station is possible using signal sensitivity information measured by the signal reception sensitivity evaluation unit; and A communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a node state setting unit that identifies a node state suitable for a communication role according to the determination result of the base station connection determination unit and sets a node state designated for each predefined communication role based on the identified node state.
In Article 1, The above node status broadcast module is, Node state information generation unit that generates communication state information of the current node; A node status information transmitting unit that transmits node status information generated by the above communication status information generating unit to adjacent nodes within a preset propagation radius; and A communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a relay node candidate determination unit that analyzes node status information from the above-mentioned node status information transmission unit and determines whether to register the corresponding transmission node as a relay relay node candidate.
In Article 1, The above relay relay path configuration module is, A link characteristic evaluation unit that calculates link characteristics including the distance of the communication path between each node, signal quality, and node operation characteristic information based on node status information of adjacent nodes received from the node status broadcast module; A candidate path generation unit that configures a relay candidate path with nodes satisfying preset node selection criteria conditions, based on the link characteristics between adjacent nodes evaluated by the link characteristic evaluation unit and the operational characteristics of adjacent nodes; A relay relay path validity determination unit that selects at least one valid path satisfying preset communication efficiency and path stability criteria among a plurality of relay relay candidate paths generated by the above candidate path generation unit; and A communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a relay relay path setting unit that sets a relay relay path by arranging the order of valid paths selected by the above-mentioned relay relay path validity determination unit into a connection-based data structure form.
In Article 1, The above data relay transmission module is, A relay relay path tracking unit that determines the next target node for transmission based on the current transmission position by referring to the relay relay path; A data transmission execution unit that transmits data to the next node determined by the above relay relay path tracking unit and monitors whether the transmission is successful; and A communication relay system using a relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a transmission validity verification unit that verifies the validity for determining whether the data transmitted through the above data transmission execution unit is transmitted normally.
In Article 1, The above path recovery control module is, A node response monitoring unit that monitors whether the next node in the relay path responds based on a preset response waiting time; An abnormal node removal unit that excludes nodes that do not respond within a time set by the above-mentioned node response monitoring unit from the relay path; A replacement node search unit that searches for a replacement node heading toward the same destination in place of the node removed by the above-mentioned abnormal node removal unit, while satisfying pre-set node selection criteria conditions for link characteristics and node attributes; and A communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network, characterized by including a relay relay path reconstruction linkage unit that transmits node information discovered by the alternative node search unit to the relay relay path configuration module so that the relay relay path configuration module can reconstruct the relay relay path.

Description

System for Communication Relay Using Relay Paths Between Ships in a Maritime Wireless Communication Network An embodiment of the present invention relates to a communication relay system between ships based on a maritime wireless communication network, which enables continuous connection with a wireless communication network base station (e.g., LTE-M) or a central control system by having ships located at the outer edge of the coverage of a communication network in a maritime environment autonomously form a relay network among themselves to form a communication relay path. With the rapid digitalization of the maritime industry in recent years, the importance of communication infrastructure between vessels and between vessels and land is growing. In particular, the maritime transport, fisheries, ocean exploration, and marine energy industries require continuous and stable communication connections for purposes such as location-based services, remote control, transmission of environmental sensor data, and safety management. Currently, most maritime wireless communications rely on LTE or LTE-M communication methods based on direct connections with land-based base stations; however, due to geographical limitations, base station coverage frequently fails to reach the open sea. As a result, communication failures occur in offshore areas far from land, causing severe limitations on real-time monitoring, remote control, and emergency response of vessels. Existing solutions include the use of satellite communication systems or relay buoys; however, satellite communication involves very high equipment installation costs and service fees, as well as real-time communication delays, while relay buoys are based on fixed locations, making it difficult to flexibly respond to vessel mobility and environmental changes. Furthermore, the maritime environment is characterized by numerous unstable factors, such as waves, weather, and the speed and direction of vessels, making it difficult for fixed or centralized communication structures to provide real-time responsiveness. In particular, existing systems have the disadvantage that relay functions are concentrated in specific fixed nodes or base stations, meaning that a failure in some nodes affects the entire communication network. Accordingly, there is an increasing demand for dynamic network structures in which the vessel itself autonomously switches communication roles based on its connection status with the base station and forms a relay chain by exchanging status information with adjacent vessels in real time. This network structure enables the decentralization, autonomy, and flexibility of network infrastructure, and is effective not only for expanding maritime communication coverage but also for disaster recovery and enhanced security. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram exemplarily showing the overall configuration and operating environment of a communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a node state classification module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a node status broadcast module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a relay relay path configuration module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a data relay transmission module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a path recovery control module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a policy-based routing control module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of a control system linkage module according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the operation sequence of a communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary timeline of normal operation of a communication relay system using a relay relay path between ships in a maritime wireless communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary timeline of failure occurrence and recovery in a communication relay system using a relay relay path betw