Overview
ISO/IEC 30140-2:2017 - Information technology - Underwater acoustic sensor network (UWASN) - Part 2: Reference architecture - defines a conceptual model and reference architectures to guide design and interoperability of UWASNs. The standard identifies and defines three domains: application domain, network domain, and UWASN domain, and provides multiple architecture views consistent with ISO/IEC 30140-1 (systems, communication and information reference architectures). For each view it describes related physical and functional entities (e.g., underwater sensor nodes, gateways, unmanned underwater vehicles and other underwater devices).
Key Topics
- UWASN conceptual model: three-domain decomposition (application, network, UWASN) and high-level system modelling.
- Systems Reference Architecture (SRA): system-level physical entities, their roles and high-level service perspectives.
- Communication Reference Architecture (CRA): layered communication model (UWA‑PHY, UWA‑Datalink, UWA‑Network, UWA‑Bundle, UWA‑Application) and network connectivity views.
- Information Reference Architecture (IRA): information gathering, delivery and application/service layers; information domain and service views.
- Functional entities and interfaces: definitions of functional modules, their interrelationships and mappings to physical entities.
- Interoperability guidance: high-level interface guidance to support interoperable UWASN deployments (detailed interoperability rules are in other parts of the 30140 series).
- Regulatory considerations: the standard is application-agnostic and does NOT prescribe acoustic waveforms or frequencies - implementers should consult regional/national regulations for underwater acoustic emissions.
Applications and Who Uses It
Practical uses span civil, scientific and defense domains:
- Environmental monitoring: water quality, pollution detection, climate and marine biology observation.
- Infrastructure monitoring: pipeline leak detection, subsea asset surveillance.
- Security & surveillance: underwater intruder detection and strategic maritime monitoring.
- Resource exploration and research: oceanographic data collection and UUV coordination.
Primary users:
- System architects, designers and implementers of UWASNs
- OEMs of underwater sensors, gateways and UUVs
- Marine researchers and environmental monitoring agencies
- IoT/IoUT integrators and network engineers focused on underwater communications
- Standards bodies and testing labs validating interoperability
Related Standards
- ISO/IEC 30140-1 - Overview and requirements for UWASN (required context)
- ISO/IEC 30140-3 and 30140-4 - Entity/interface descriptions and interoperability requirements (other parts of the series)
- ISO/IEC 29182-2 - Sensor network terminology and vocabulary (normative reference)
ISO/IEC 30140-2 is a design-oriented, architecture-level standard that helps teams build interoperable, standards-aligned underwater acoustic sensor networks without prescribing specific acoustic technologies.
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