Best-Suited Communication Technology for Maritime Signaling Facilities: A Literature Review
Source abstract
Abstract
The remote monitoring of maritime signaling facilities is one of the marine navigation safety rules essential for ensuring global maritime traffic. Some maritime signaling facilities have not yet implemented remote monitoring systems. This challenge is posed by factors such as insufficient signal range, limited availability of electrical energy, or various economic reasons. Therefore, this paper reviews the current and relevant scientific literature on 10 communication technologies for maritime signaling facilities in the last two decades using PRISMA guidelines. PRISMA 2020 represents guidelines for conducting systematic review papers using mixed methods, including their applicability to various reviews. In addition, this paper analyzes the selection of the best-suited communication technology for communication between maritime signaling facilities. The results show that, initially, 214 papers met the specified criteria, and after applying the filtering, it was narrowed to 29 relevant papers for the research topic. Surprisingly, almost half of them were found in databases other than WOS, SCOPUS, and GOOGLE SCHOLAR. Also, LoRa WAN is the most energy-efficient and cost-effective option, with a consumption rate 2.14 times lower than AIS and NB-IoT. To summarize, it has been found that LoRa WAN represents the optimal communication technology for transmitting data from maritime signaling facilities across long distances.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline
Research context
OpenAlex topics: Satellite Communication Systems · Underwater Vehicles and Communication Systems · Opportunistic and Delay-Tolerant Networks
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Plovput d.o.o., 21000 Split, Croatia
Faculty of Maritime Studies, University of Split, 21000 Split, Croatia
Funding
Faculty of Maritime Studies, Split, Republic of Croatia
References (89)
Show source-provided references
1. Wang, K., Liang, M., Li, Y., Liu, J., and Liu, R.W. (2019, January 15–18). Maritime Traffic Data Visualization: A Brief Review. Proceedings of the 2019 IEEE 4th International Conference on Big Data Analytics (ICBDA), Suzhou, China.10.1109/ICBDA.2019.8713227 ↗
2. Increased maritime traffic in the Arctic: Implications for governance of Arctic sea routes10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104566 ↗
3. The seaport traffic scheduling problem: Formulations and a column-row generation algorithm10.1016/j.trb.2019.08.003 ↗
4. Optimal ship navigation with safety distance and realistic turn constraints10.1016/j.ejor.2013.03.022 ↗
5. A Routing Scheme by Normalized Transmission Characteristics (NTCR) for Multi-Carrier MANETs at Sea10.5916/jkosme.2011.35.8.1092 ↗
6. Brown, A.C., and Paasch, R.K. (2021). The Accelerations of a Wave Measurement Buoy Impacted by Breaking Waves in the Surf Zone. J. Mar. Sci. Eng., 9.10.3390/jmse9020214 ↗
7. Ta, T.D., Tran, T.D., Do, D.D., Nguyen, H.V., Vu, Y.V., and Tran, N.X. (2011, January 25–27). GPS-based Wireless Ad-hoc Network for Marine Monitoring, Search and Rescue (MSnR). Proceedings of the IEEE 2nd International Conference on Intelligent Systems, Modelling, and Simulation, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.10.1109/ISMS.2011.60 ↗
8. GPS based tracking of maritime line of control monitoring system
9. Marušić, E., Šoda, J., and Krčum, M. (2020). The Three-Parameter Classification Model of Seasonal Fluctuations in the Croatian Nautical Port System. Sustainability, 12.10.3390/su12125079 ↗
10. Marušić, Z., Ivandic, N., and Horak, S. (2014, January 17–18). Nautical Tourism within TSA Framework: Case of Croatia. Proceedings of the 13th Global Forum on Tourism Statistics, Nara, Japan.
11. Argument for Evidence-Based Development of Sustainable Normative Framework for Nautical Tourism Ports: Case of Croatia
12. Economic development versus environmental sustainability: The case of tourist marinas in Andalusia10.54055/ejtr.v2i2.35 ↗
13. Kovačić, M., Favro, S., and Staftić, D. (June, January 31). Comparative analysis of Croatian and Mediterranean Nautical Tourism Ports. Proceedings of the 2nd International Scientific Conference, Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Marketing and Management Conference, Corfu, Greece.
14. Zec, D., Jugović, A., Frančić, V., and Žgaljić, D. (2019). Nacionalni Plan Obalnog Linijskog Pomorskog Prometa, Sveučilište u Rijeci, Pomorski Fakultet.
15. Investigation of global system for mobile communication signal coverage in faculty of engineering, rivers state university, port Harcourt, Nigeria
16. Appraisal of global system for mobile communication (GSM) in Nigeria
17. Karin, I., Golub Medvešek, I., Matić, P., and Jurčević, S. (2023). Raising the level of navigation safety using the AIS system. 10th IMSC International Maritime Science Conference Book of Proceedings IMSC2023, Pomorski Fakultet Sveučilišta u Splitu.
18. Karin, I., Vrlić, J., Belak, Z., and Ružić, I. (2013, January 20–24). Possibility to use wireless communications to establish a “mesh” data network with all maritime signalling facilities in the Adriatic. Proceedings of the Mipro 2013, Opatija, Croatia.
19. Machine-Type Communication for Maritime Internet of Things: A Design10.1109/COMST.2020.3015694 ↗
20. Hensley, W., and Heitsenrether, R. (2017, January 18–22). Iridium telemetry of real-time ocean current data from USCG ATON buoy platforms. Proceedings of the OCEANS 2017, Anchorage, AK, USA.
21. IALA (International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities) (2025, January 05). VDES Overview and Development. [Online]. Available online: https://www.iala.int/technical/connectivity/vdes-vhf-data-exchange-system/.
22. Evaluation of the use of M2M-type NB-IoT and LTE technologies for maritime communication systems10.2478/pomr-2023-0013 ↗
23. Mun, S.M., Son, J.Y., Jo, W.R., and Lee, W.B. (2012, January 29–31). An implementation of AIS-based ad hoc routing (AAR) protocol for maritime data communication networks. Proceedings of the 2012 8th International Conference on Natural Computation, Chongqing, China.10.1109/ICNC.2012.6234623 ↗
24. Schneider, A. (2006, January 18–21). Near shore wireless communication system for sensor buoys. Proceedings of the OCEANS 2006, Boston, MA, USA.10.1109/OCEANS.2006.306811 ↗
25. Design of containerized marine knowledge system based on IoT-Cloud and LoRaWAN10.1007/s00779-020-01381-8 ↗
26. A low-cost GPS GSM/GPRS telemetry system: Performance in stationary field tests and preliminary data on wild otters (Lutra lutra)10.1371/journal.pone.0029235 ↗
27. Pérez, C.A., Jimenez, M., Soto, F., Torres, R., López, J.A., and Iborra, A. (2011, January 6–9). A system for monitoring marine environments based on wireless sensor networks. Proceedings of the OCEANS 2011 IEEE, Santander, Spain.10.1109/Oceans-Spain.2011.6003584 ↗
28. Reproducible research practices are underused in systematic reviews of biomedical interventions10.1016/j.jclinepi.2017.10.017 ↗
29. (2021, December 06). PRISMA. Available online: http://www.prisma-statement.org/.
30. The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews
31. Bojić, F., Gudelj, A., and Bošnjak, R. (2022). Port-related shipping gas emissions—A systematic review of research. Appl. Sci., 12.10.3390/app12073603 ↗
32. Akhtman, J., and Hanzo, L. (2009, January 20–23). Power Versus Bandwidth-Efficiency in Wireless Communications: The Economic Perspective. Proceedings of the 2009 IEEE 70th Vehicular Technology Conference Fall, Anchorage, AK, USA.10.1109/VETECF.2009.5379027 ↗
33. Evaluation of Reproducible Research Practices in Oncology Systematic Reviews With Meta-analyses Referenced by National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines10.1001/jamaoncol.2019.2564 ↗
34. Overviews of systematic reviews: Great promise, greater challenge10.1186/s13643-017-0582-8 ↗
35. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement10.7326/0003-4819-151-4-200908180-00135 ↗
36. Lessing, P.A., Bernard, L.J., Tetreault, B.J., and Chaffin, J.N. (2006, January 18–21). Use of the automatic identification system (AIS) on autonomous weather buoys for maritime domain awareness applications. Proceedings of the OCEANS 2006, Boston, MA, USA.10.1109/OCEANS.2006.307023 ↗
37. Di Ciaccio, F., Menegazzo, P., and Troisi, S. (2019). Optimization of the maritime signalling system in the lagoon of Venice. Sensors, 19.10.3390/s19051216 ↗
38. Research Study and the Model for Improving the Safety of Navigation when Using the AIS
39. Cho, S., Kim, H.J., Seo, S., Sung, K., Hwang, Y.S., and Oh, S.M. (2022, January 19–21). On the Communication Platform for the Smart Aids to Navigation. Proceedings of the 2022 13th International Conference on Information and Communication Technology Convergence (ICTC), Jeju, Republic of Korea.10.1109/ICTC55196.2022.9952474 ↗
40. Development and range testing of a LoRaWAN system in an urban environment
41. Cho, H., and Yu, S.C. (2018, January 22–25). Development of a long-range marine communication system for fishery buoy searching. Proceedings of the OCEANS 2018 MTS/IEEE, Charleston, SC, USA.10.1109/OCEANS.2018.8604812 ↗
42. Xia, L., Zheng, J., and Wu, H. (2019, January 28–30). A LoRa Buoy Network Coverage Optimization Algorithm Based on Virtual Force. Proceedings of the 2019 IEEE 2nd International Conference on Information Communication and Signal Processing (ICICSP), Weihai, China.10.1109/ICICSP48821.2019.8958591 ↗
43. Cho, H., and Yu, S.C. (2019, January 16–19). Performance evaluation of a long-range marine communication system for fishing buoy detection. Proceedings of the 2019 IEEE Underwater Technology (UT), Kaohsiung, Taiwan.10.1109/UT.2019.8734304 ↗
44. Parri, L., Parrino, S., Peruzzi, G., and Pozzebon, A. (2019). Low power wide area networks (LPWAN) at sea: Performance analysis of offshore data transmission by means of LoRaWAN connectivity for marine monitoring applications. Sensors, 19.10.3390/s19143239 ↗
45. Karin, I., Matić, P., and Dodig, H. (2020, January 17–18). Wireless communications as a tool for establishing buoy monitoring systems on maritime waterways in the Adriatic. Proceedings of the ICTS 2020, Bristol, UK.
46. Parri, L., Parrino, S., Peruzzi, G., and Pozzebon, A. (2020, January 25–28). A LoRaWAN network infrastructure for the remote monitoring of offshore sea farms. Proceedings of the 2020 IEEE International Instrumentation and Measurement Technology Conference (I2MTC), Dubrovnik, Croatia.10.1109/I2MTC43012.2020.9128370 ↗
47. Pensieri, S., Viti, F., Moser, G., Serpico, S.B., Maggiolo, L., Pastorino, M., Solarna, D., Cambiaso, A., Carraro, C., and Degano, C. (2021). Evaluating LoRaWAN Connectivity in a Marine Scenario. J. Mar. Sci. Eng., 9.10.3390/jmse9111218 ↗
48. Turčinović, F., Šišul, G., and Bosiljevac, M. (2021). LoRaWAN base station improvement for better coverage and capacity. J. Low Power Electron. Appl., 12.10.3390/jlpea12010001 ↗
49. Novel Maritime Wireless Communication based on Mobile Technology for the Safety of Navigation: LTE-Maritime focusing on the Cell Planning and its Verification
50. Design and research for lower computer system of wave buoy based on GPRS technology
51. Zi, M.F., and Gui-zhen, S. (2012, January 14–17). Design and implementation of sea information system. Proceedings of the 2012 7th International Conference on Computer Science & Education (ICCSE), Melbourne, Australia.10.1109/ICCSE.2012.6295249 ↗
52. Design and performance of gprs communication based drifting buoy for measurement of upper layer current in coastal area
53. Del Pizzo, S., De Martino, A., De Viti, G., Testa, R.L., and De Angelis, G. (2018, January 8–10). IoT for buoy monitoring system. Proceedings of the 2018 IEEE International Workshop on Metrology for the Sea; Learning to Measure Sea Health Parameters (MetroSea), Bari, Italy.10.1109/MetroSea.2018.8657828 ↗
54. Przybysz, A., Duarte, C.M., Geraldi, N.R., Kosel, J., and Berumen, M.L. (2020, January 9–11). Cellular network marine sensor buoy. Proceedings of the 2020 IEEE Sensors Applications Symposium (SAS), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.10.1109/SAS48726.2020.9220047 ↗
55. Yang, S., Khan, S., Chuanxi, X., Yifeng, Z., and Shengchun, P. (2019, January 27–31). Design and Realization of a Buoy for Ocean Acoustic Tomography in Coastal Sea based on NB-IoT Technology. Proceedings of the OCEANS 2019, Seattle, WA, USA.10.1109/OCEANSE.2019.8867230 ↗
56. A survey on LPWA technology: LoRa and NB-IoT10.1016/j.icte.2017.03.004 ↗
57. Wang, X., Chen, Y., and Xu, B. (2012). Research progress of a novel hybrid 3G-VHF communication system over maritime buoys. Advances in Swarm Intelligence, Proceedings of the Third International Conference, ICSI 2012, Shenzhen, China, 17–20 June 2012 Proceedings, Part II, Springer.10.1007/978-3-642-31020-1_69 ↗
58. Chandra, S., Karl, S., Srinivasulu, A., and Mohantal, D.K. (2011, January 20–22). Distribution system automation based on GSM using programmable system on chip (PSOC). Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Energy and Intelligent Systems (SEISCON 2011), Chennai, India.10.1049/cp.2011.0403 ↗
59. Implementation of smart buoys and satellite-based systems for the remote monitoring of harmful algae bloom in inland waters
60. Methodology for the remote transfer of GPS receiver station data through a GSM network10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e08330 ↗
61. Development And Field Test of Gps-Gsm Drifting Buoy For Measurement of Sea Surface Current Data
62. Wireless sensor networks buoy for coastal waters observation10.29244/jitkt.v8i1.12714 ↗
63. Routing techniques in sensor network—A survey10.1016/j.proeng.2012.06.320 ↗
64. Gomez, C., Darroudi, S.M., Naranjo, H., and Paradells, J. (2021). On the Energy Performance of Iridium Satellite IoT Technology. Sensors, 21.10.3390/s21217235 ↗
65. Jiang, S. (2019). Marine Internet for Internetworking in Oceans: A Tutorial. Future Internet, 11.10.3390/fi11070146 ↗
66. (2024, December 11). IALA Guideline G1153. Available online: https://www.iala.int/product/g1153/.
67. VHF Data Exchange System (VDES): An enabling technology for maritime communications10.1007/s12567-018-0214-8 ↗
68. Ease of Communication with Wireless Advancements
69. Francisco, S.M. (2021). Measurement-Based Characterization of the 5G New Radio Small Cell Propagation Environment. [Master’s Thesis, Universidade da Beira Interior].
70. Enhanced remote areas communications: The missing scenario for 5G and beyond 5G networks10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3042437 ↗
71. Hoeft, M., Gierlowski, K., and Wozniak, J. (2023). Wireless Link Selection Methods for Maritime Communication Access Networks—A Deep Learning Approach. Sensors, 23.10.3390/s23010400 ↗
72. Challenges in maritime wireless communication: Coverage and propagation effects
73. Energy-efficient communication technologies for maritime applications
74. Cost-benefit analysis of satellite versus terrestrial communication for maritime IoT applications
75. Deployment Techniques in Wireless Sensor Networks, Coverage and Connectivity: A Survey10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2902072 ↗
76. Laurent, H. (2009, January 22–23). Holistic approach for future energy efficient cellular networks. Proceedings of the CEA-LETI, 11th Leti Annual Review, Grenoble, France.
77. A survey of energy-efficient wireless communications10.1109/SURV.2012.020212.00049 ↗
78. Fundamental trade-offs on green wireless networks10.1109/MCOM.2011.5783982 ↗
79. Chen, Y., Zhang, S., and Xu, S. (2010, January 23–27). Characterizing energy efficiency and deployment efficiency relations for green architecture design. Proceedings of the 2010 IEEE International Conference on Communications Workshops, Cape Town, South Africa.10.1109/ICCW.2010.5503900 ↗
80. Badic, B., O’Farrrell, T., Loskot, P., and He, J. (2009, January 20–23). Energy efficient radio access architectures for green radio: Large versus small cell size deployment. Proceedings of the 2009 IEEE 70th Vehicular Technology Conference Fall, Anchorage, AK, USA.10.1109/VETECF.2009.5379035 ↗
81. Gow, G., and Smith, R. (2005). Mobile and Wireless Communications: An Introduction, Open University Press/McGraw-Hill.
82. Data Collection and Wireless Communication in Internet of Things (IoT) Using Economic Analysis and Pricing Models: A Survey10.1109/COMST.2016.2582841 ↗
83. (2024, December 29). International Organization for Marine Aids to Navigation. Available online: https://www.iala.int/about-iala/.
84. (2025, January 05). International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities, Recommendation E-109 on Marine Aids to Navigation. Available online: https://www.iala-aism.org.
85. (2024, December 29). International Maritime Organization. Available online: https://www.imo.org/.
86. (2024, December 29). Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services (RTCM). Available online: https://www.rtcm.org/.
87. Frauendorf, J.L., and de Souza, É.A. (2023). The Architectural and Technological Revolution of 5G, Springer.10.1007/978-3-031-10650-7 ↗
88. Hybrid Satellite-Terrestrial Communication Networks for the Maritime Internet of Things: Key Technologies, Opportunities, and Challenges10.1109/JIOT.2021.3056091 ↗
89. LEO Satellite Constellation for Internet of Things10.1109/ACCESS.2017.2735988 ↗