Egc Settings; What Is The Egc (Enhanced Group Call) Service - Furuno INMARSAT-C FELCOM 18 Operator's Manual

3. SYSTEM INITIALIZATION
3.4

EGC Settings

3.4.1

What is the EGC (Enhanced Group Call) service?

The EGC service enables EGC information providers to send SafetyNET
TM
NET and System messages via an LES to a specific groups of ships, or to all ships
within a defined geographical area.
Each type of EGC service is sent as follows:
• The information provider prepares the message, and then accesses the appropriate
Country of the international telex network to send the message to an LES.
• The LES processes and forwards it to the NCS for the ocean region designated by
the provider.
• Then, the NCS broadcasts the message throughout the ocean region. (The operator
may select the EGC messages to receive by position (one position) and geographical
position (nine areas). For further details see section 3.4.2.
Information Provider
* Meteorological body
* Navtex station
* Coast guard
* Rescue center
* Shipping company, etc.
There are three types of EGC services:
1) SafetyNET
This provides a means for information providers to distribute Maritime Safety Infor-
mation (MSI) from shore-to-ship. Authorized information providers include:
• Hydrographic Offices, for navigational warnings
• National Weather Services, for meteorological warnings and forecasts
• Rescue Co-ordination Center, for shore-to-ship distress alerts and other urgent infor-
mation
• International Ice Patrol, for North Atlantic ice hazards
2) FleetNET
This service allows authorized information providers such as commercial subscrip-
tion services, shipping companies and governments, which have registered with a
LES that supports FleetNET
MESs. Typical applications of FleetNET
• Fleet or company broadcasts
• News broadcasts
• Commercial weather service
• Government broadcasts to all vessels on a country's registration
3-10
Ch1
LES1
Ch2
LES2
Ch3
LES3
Ch1-Ch3 are dedicated
channels for each LES.
TM
TM
TM
, to broadcast messages to selected group of
Satellite
NCS common channel
MES
MES
MES
NCS
TM
are
TM
, Fleet-