Watching satellite TV on a vessel on the big oceans is a bit of a challenge. For uninterrupted viewing the antenna must at all times be directed towards the satellite with an accuracy of less than a degree, despite the movements of the ship.

For more than a decade members of the Zellaco team has assisted in developing several models and generations of satellite tracking TV antennas for maritime use.

In harsh environment as the North Sea with wave heights on 10 m and windspeeds up to 50 m/s, ship movement as roll, pitch and yaw up to 40°/s must be handled. Any fraction of deviation will immediately cause loss of viewing.

To cope the extreme real-time demands of reading and process sensor input from e.g. GPS, gyroscopes, accelerometers and simultaneously control the motors for the lobe tracking, we designed a high performance MCU-unit fitted with state-of-the-art software FIR-filter control.

End result is a system offering uninterrupted TV viewing supporting the crew to relax and enjoy their free time and also as a convenience for passengers on cruising ships as e.g. the Hurtigruten.