OGC and Smart Ocean Sensor Consortium (SOSC) to collaborate

The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and the Smart Ocean Sensor Consortium (SOSC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance sensor observing systems for the oceans community.

Under the agreement the two organizations will participate in joint outreach and marketing activities to raise awareness and interest in smart sensor systems and Sensor Web Enablement. The organizations’ first cooperative activity will focus on the Monterey Bay Research Institute’s (MBARI) PUCK protocol for hydrographic sensor configuration. The PUCK protocol specification has been submitted to the OGC as a candidate standard.

"This agreement is a natural outcome of the active role that the ocean observing community has played in the OGC in recent years," explained Mark Reichardt, President and CEO of the OGC. "We look forward to an ongoing dialog with the ocean sensor manufacturers and users represented by the SOSC as they tackle a range of ocean-related interoperability issues in activities such as climate research, meteorology, disaster management, resource management, and navigation."

According to Neil Cater, Chair of the SOSC, "Collecting ocean data can be expensive and challenging. Smart ocean sensors will reduce cost and effort and offer greater value to the end user. The agreement between OGC and the Smart Ocean Sensors Consortium is an important step in establishing a new class of interoperable plug and work sensors."