Low earth orbit satellite earth beam pointing method and apparatus, storage medium and electronic device

Abstract

This invention relates to the field of low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, specifically disclosing a method, apparatus, storage medium, and electronic device for LEO satellite-to-Earth beam staring. The method includes: adjusting the beamwidth of a target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the Earth coverage area of ​​the LEO satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface location to remain within a preset area. The target beam provides services to terminals at the target Earth surface location, and the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal, with the beam pointing normal aligned with the Earth's center in real time. The invention also involves adjusting the equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the LEO satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface location to remain within a preset density range. This invention solves the technical problem of service interruptions caused by frequent beam switching within LEO satellites.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of low Earth orbit satellites, and more specifically, to a method, apparatus, storage medium, and electronic device for low Earth orbit satellites to stare at the ground with a beam. Background Technology

[0002] In satellite communication networks, low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites operate at altitudes of several hundred kilometers above the Earth. Through dense deployment of large-scale LEO satellites, seamless coverage of the Earth's surface can be achieved, providing users with all-weather, low-latency access services. Unlike high-Earth orbit (GEO) satellites, which are stationary relative to the Earth, LEO satellites move at high speeds relative to the Earth. During the service provided by LEO satellites to users, the communication angle between the satellite and the user terminal undergoes a process of "first increasing and then decreasing." When the communication angle between a certain LEO satellite and the user terminal falls below the minimum requirement, it is usually necessary to establish communication with the next satellite with a communication angle higher than the minimum. In other words, providing services to users requires beam switching between different satellites.

[0003] Existing patents concerning low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite beam switching only focus on the inter-satellite beam switching process. For example, the "Optimal Service Distribution Routing Method for Multi-Layer Satellite Networks Based on Minimizing Latency" (patent application number: CN201510112475.4) considers the switching between LEO and MEO satellites. When the service arrival rate in the area covered by LEO satellites is less than a threshold, services are transmitted only between LEO satellites; otherwise, the switching is performed to MEO satellites. The "Low-Earth Orbit Satellite Switching Method, System, Device, and Storage Medium" (patent application number: CN202111508721.X) considers using the routing table between LEO satellites as the basis for inter-satellite switching, determining the optimal route based on resource information between different satellites.

[0004] The above patents all focus on handover methods between different satellites, but do not consider how to reduce the probability of intra-satellite beam switching. When a low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite passes over a user and establishes a communication link, the user terminal will also switch between different beams within a single satellite because LEO satellites typically use multiple point beams for ground coverage. Since different beams use frequency and polarization reuse, frequent intra-satellite beam switching also requires frequency and polarization switching, increasing the probability of service interruption.

[0005] There is currently no effective solution to the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This invention provides a method, apparatus, storage medium, and electronic device for low-Earth orbit satellite beam staring at the ground, to at least solve the technical problem of service interruption caused by frequent beam switching within low-Earth orbit satellites.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite to stare at the Earth with a beam is provided, comprising: adjusting the beamwidth of a target beam in real time based on a beam pointing angle to control the Earth coverage area of ​​the LEO satellite during its transit motion relative to a target Earth surface location to be within a preset area, wherein the target beam provides services to a terminal at the target Earth surface location, the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal, and the beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time; and adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the LEO satellite during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface location to be within a preset density range.

[0008] Preferably, the above-mentioned real-time adjustment of the beamwidth of the target beam based on the beam pointing angle includes: calculating the number of antenna working units in real time based on the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the number of antenna working units in real time to adjust the beamwidth of the target beam, wherein the number of antenna working units is the number of antenna units in the working state of the spaceborne phased array antenna.

[0009] Preferably, the above-mentioned real-time calculation of the number of antenna working units based on the real-time beam pointing angle includes: calculating the number of antenna working units according to the number of reference antenna working units corresponding to the maximum beam pointing angle of the target beam and the beam pointing angle, wherein the maximum beam pointing angle is the beam pointing angle at the start and end positions of the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface position.

[0010] The preferred embodiment of adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface includes: determining the calculation relationship between the number of antenna working units and the beamwidth based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface, so as to control the ground coverage area to be within the preset area by adjusting the number of antenna working units in real time.

[0011] Preferably, the above-mentioned real-time adjustment of the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam based on the beam pointing angle includes: real-time adjustment of the transmit power and transmit gain of the target beam based on the beam pointing angle, wherein the transmit power of the target beam is adjusted in real time to adjust the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam, wherein the transmit gain of the target beam is related to the number of antenna working units.

[0012] Preferably, the above-mentioned real-time adjustment of the transmission power and transmission gain of the target beam based on the beam pointing angle includes: calculating the transmission power of each antenna working unit in real time according to the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the transmission power of each antenna working unit in real time to adjust the transmission power of the target beam in real time.

[0013] Preferably, the above-mentioned method of adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmission power flux density of the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface includes: determining the operational relationship between the transmission power of each antenna unit and the transmission power flux density of the target beam based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface; calculating the transmission power of each antenna unit in real time based on the beam pointing angle; and controlling the transmission power flux density to be within the preset density range by adjusting the transmission power of each antenna unit in real time.

[0014] According to another aspect of the present invention, a low-orbit satellite ground-viewing beam staring device is also provided, comprising: a coverage area control unit, configured to adjust the beamwidth of a target beam in real time based on a beam pointing angle, so as to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite during its transit motion relative to a target Earth surface location to be within a preset area, wherein the target beam provides services to a terminal at the target Earth surface location, the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal, and the beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time; and a transmit power flux density control unit, configured to adjust the equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, so as to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface location to be within a preset density range.

[0015] According to another aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, wherein a computer program is stored in the computer program, wherein the computer program is configured to execute the above-described low-orbit satellite ground beam staring method when it is run.

[0016] According to another aspect of the present invention, an electronic device is also provided, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program and the processor is configured to execute the above-described low-orbit satellite ground beam staring method through the computer program.

[0017] In this embodiment of the invention, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the Earth coverage area of ​​the low-Earth orbit satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface to remain within a preset range. The equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam is also adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-Earth orbit satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface to remain within a preset density range. By adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam used to provide terminal services in real time based on the beam pointing angle, the Earth coverage area of ​​the target beam remains relatively constant. By adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam, the transmit power flux density of the target beam remains relatively constant. This results in minimal variation in the received signal level of the terminal located at the target ground position, thus providing a relatively stable signal-to-noise ratio output to the candidate demodulator. This avoids the signal switching and interference issues caused by changes in beam coverage area and transmit power flux density, which can lead to the terminal switching between different beams of the low-Earth orbit satellite. This achieves the technical effect that the ground-based terminal is always covered by the same beam range of the low-Earth orbit satellite and can use the same beam for service communication. In turn, it solves the technical problem of service interruption caused by frequent beam switching within the low-Earth orbit satellite. Attached Figure Description

[0018] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the invention and, together with their description, serve to explain the invention and do not constitute an undue limitation thereof. In the drawings:

[0019] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating an optional low-orbit satellite ground beam staring method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the application environment of an optional low-orbit satellite ground beam staring method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of an optional low-orbit satellite ground-viewing beam staring device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an optional electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0023] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present invention, the technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0024] It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this invention are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate so that the embodiments of the invention described herein can be implemented in orders other than those illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0025] According to one aspect of the present invention, a low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite beam-staring method is provided. This method is widely used on LEO satellites located in Earth orbit that provide communication services to ground terminals. By using LEO satellite beam-staring, the relative constancy of the ground coverage area and transmit power flux density is maintained during the transit motion of the LEO satellite relative to the target Earth surface location. This ensures that the same target beam is always used to provide services to terminals at the target Earth surface location, avoiding beam switching between terminals on the same LEO satellite, improving the service guarantee of LEO satellites, and significantly reducing the probability of terminal serving other terminals.

[0026] As an optional implementation method, such as Figure 1 As shown, the aforementioned low-orbit satellite ground-viewing beam staring method includes:

[0027] S102, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within the preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. The target beam provides services to the terminal at the target Earth surface position, and the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal. The beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time.

[0028] S104 adjusts the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target's position on the Earth's surface.

[0029] During low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite transit services, the beam continuously changes its direction, ensuring that terminals within the beam's coverage area remain within that beam's coverage area, achieving beam staring. Beam staring eliminates the need for terminals to switch between different satellite beams, thus reducing the probability of service interruption. As the LEO satellite passes over the target Earth's surface location (i.e., the ground terminal) to provide service, real-time adjustments to the beam's pointing angle ensure beam staring, keeping the terminal always within the coverage of a single target LEO satellite beam. This solves the problem of service interruption caused by frequent switching between different beams during LEO satellite transit services.

[0030] During low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite transit services, the constantly changing communication angle between the terminal and the satellite, along with the varying satellite-to-ground communication distance, leads to free-space transmission loss and variations in the received signal level at the user terminal. To maintain a relatively stable received signal level and provide a relatively stable signal-to-noise ratio for backend demodulation, the equivalent isotropic radiated power (EIRP) is adjusted in real-time during beam staring. By continuously adjusting the transmitted EIRP of the staring beam (which is the target beam for the target location on the Earth's surface) during LEO satellite beam staring, the variation in the received signal level at the terminal is minimized, thus resolving the problem of significant variations in the received signal level caused by changes in the satellite-to-ground transmission distance during beam staring.

[0031] During low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite transit services, the communication angle between the terminal and the satellite constantly changes, causing the beam scanning angle of the onboard antenna to gradually deviate from the normal and the off-axis angle to gradually increase. This leads to changes in transmit gain, which in turn causes changes in the terminal's received signal level. To maintain a relatively stable received signal level at the user terminal and provide a relatively stable signal-to-noise ratio for backend demodulation, the onboard antenna adjusts its equivalent isotropic radiated power (EIRP) in real time during beam staring. By continuously adjusting the transmit EIRP of the staring beam during LEO satellite beam staring, the changes in the terminal's received signal level are minimized, thus solving the problem of large changes in the terminal's received signal level caused by gain drops due to beam scanning of the onboard phased array antenna during beam staring.

[0032] During low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite transit services, the antenna needs to perform beam scanning, resulting in continuous changes in the pointing angle. As the pointing angle deviates from the normal, the beamwidth increases, leading to an increase in the beam's ground coverage area. Terminals located in areas where multiple beams overlap will simultaneously receive interference signals from different beams, reducing the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). To provide a relatively stable SNR for backend demodulation, the onboard antenna adjusts its beamwidth in real time during beam staring. By continuously adjusting the beamwidth of the onboard antenna during LEO satellite beam staring, the beam's ground coverage area is made approximately constant, thus solving the problem of multi-beam interference to terminals caused by changes in beam coverage area during beam staring.

[0033] As an optional implementation, adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle includes: calculating the number of antenna working units in real time based on the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam in real time by adjusting the number of antenna working units, wherein the number of antenna working units is the number of antenna units in the spaceborne phased array antenna that are in operation.

[0034] As an optional implementation, the number of antenna working units is calculated in real time based on the real-time beam pointing angle, including: calculating the number of antenna working units according to the reference number of antenna working units and the beam pointing angle corresponding to the maximum beam pointing angle of the target beam, wherein the maximum beam pointing angle is the beam pointing angle at the start and end positions of the low-orbit satellite's transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position.

[0035] Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites employ phased array antennas. Compared to multi-feed reflector antennas, phased array antennas achieve beam pointing through real-time configuration of active phase shifters and attenuators, offering advantages such as high beam scanning speed, low beam profile, and ease of integration with satellite platforms. By configuring phased array antenna payloads for LEO satellites, the problems of high payload profile, inflexible beam pointing changes, and inability to control ground beam coverage during high-speed LEO satellite movement are resolved.

[0036] Low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite-borne phased array antennas divide the array surface into multiple subarrays. By configuring the amplitude and phase of the antenna elements in each subarray, beams with specific directions are formed, resulting in different beam directions from different subarrays. This flexible division of the phased array antenna payload into subarrays generates multiple beams, solving the problem of limited beam numbers associated with reflector antennas.

[0037] Low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite-borne phased array antennas combine electromagnetic waves radiated by horizontally and vertically polarized antennas in space to form electromagnetic waves with variable left-hand and right-hand circular polarization. By configuring the polarization and transmission / reception frequencies of the multiple beams generated by the phased array antenna payload in real time, the problem of fixed and inflexible beam polarization and transmission / reception frequency configurations of reflector antennas is solved.

[0038] Low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite-borne phased array antennas can flexibly form multiple high-gain spot beams, with the frequency and polarization of each beam changing in real time. These satellite-borne phased array antennas can create dense spot beam coverage over the ground and improve the throughput of satellite-to-ground wireless transmission through polarization and frequency reuse. By configuring the polarization and transmit / receive frequencies of the multiple beams generated by the phased array antenna payload in real time, dense spot beams covering the ground through polarization and frequency reuse are formed, improving network transmission throughput and solving the problem of limited throughput for single-beam coverage of the ground by satellite-borne antennas.

[0039] As an optional implementation, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface. This includes: determining the calculation relationship between the number of antenna working units and the beamwidth based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface, so as to control the ground coverage area to be within the preset area by adjusting the number of antenna working units in real time.

[0040] As an optional implementation, the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle, including: adjusting the transmit power and transmit gain of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, thereby adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time by adjusting the transmit power of the target beam, wherein the transmit gain of the target beam is related to the number of antenna working elements.

[0041] As an optional implementation, adjusting the transmit power and transmit gain of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle includes: calculating the transmit power of each antenna working unit in real time according to the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the transmit power of each antenna working unit in real time to adjust the transmit power of the target beam in real time.

[0042] As an optional implementation, the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface. This includes: determining the calculation relationship between the transmit power of each antenna unit and the transmit power flux density of the target beam based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface; calculating the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time based on the beam pointing angle; and controlling the transmit power flux density within a preset density range by adjusting the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time.

[0043] In this embodiment, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-Earth orbit satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface to remain within a preset range. The equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam is also adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-Earth orbit satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface to remain within a preset density range. By adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam used to provide terminal services in real time based on the beam pointing angle, the ground coverage area of ​​the target beam remains relatively constant. By adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam, the transmit power flux density of the target beam remains relatively constant. This results in minimal variation in the received signal level of the terminal located at the target ground position, thus providing a relatively stable signal-to-noise ratio output to the candidate demodulator. This avoids the signal switching and interference issues caused by changes in beam coverage area and transmit power flux density, which can lead to the terminal switching between different beams of the low-Earth orbit satellite. This achieves the technical effect that the ground-based terminal is always covered by the same beam range of the low-Earth orbit satellite and can use the same beam for service communication. In turn, it solves the technical problem of service interruption caused by frequent beam switching within the low-Earth orbit satellite.

[0044] Applications of low-Earth orbit satellite beam staring are not limited to, for example Figure 2 As shown. Figure 2 In this context, O is the center of the Earth, and the terminal uses an omnidirectional antenna to receive signals from the low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite. The terminal is assumed to be stationary at position T on the Earth's surface. The Earth's radius is Re, and the LEO satellite's orbital altitude is h. Assuming that the LEO satellite continuously adjusts its attitude during its transit to ensure the beam pointing direction of the onboard phased array antenna is always aligned with the Earth's center, the beam pointing angle ψ of the LEO satellite is defined as the angle between the beam pointing direction and the normal direction, and ψmax is the maximum beam pointing angle of the onboard phased array antenna (0 ≤ ψ ≤ ψmax). The geocentric half-angle φ is defined as the angle between the Earth's center, the satellite, and the terminal, and φmax is the maximum value of the geocentric half-angle (0 ≤ φ ≤ φmax). Based on geometric relationships, the maximum value of the geocentric half-angle φmax is not limited to being determined by equation (1):

[0045]

[0046] Assuming the satellites corresponding to the maximum geocentric half-angle φmax are located at points A and B respectively, the low-orbit satellite's movement from point A to point B is a transit motion relative to its position T on the Earth's surface. The transit time Ts is the time required for the satellite to travel from point A to point B, which can be calculated using equation (2):

[0047]

[0048] In equation (2), denoted as the orbital period, and μ as the Kepler constant.

[0049] The transmission distance d between the satellite and the ground terminal can be calculated by equation (3):

[0050]

[0051] like Figure 2 As shown, the specific process of low-orbit satellite beam staring is as follows: When the satellite moves to point A, the beam pointing angle is ψ = ∠OAT = ψmax. As the satellite moves, the beam pointing angle ψ gradually decreases. When the satellite, terminal, and Earth's center are collinear, the satellite is at the zenith position, and the beam pointing angle ψ is zero, ψ = 0, and the beam points to the normal. As the satellite moves from the zenith position to point B, the beam pointing angle gradually increases from ψ zero to ψ = ∠OBT = ψmax. It can be seen that during the beam staring process, the beam pointing angle ψ undergoes a process of "gradually decreasing from ψmax to zero and then gradually increasing to ψmax". Similarly, the Earth's center half-angle φ also undergoes a process of "gradually decreasing from φmax to zero and then gradually increasing to φmax". Combining equation (3), it can be seen that the maximum value dmax of the transmission distance d between the satellite and the terminal is not limited to:

[0052]

[0053] When the minimum transmission distance d between the satellite and the terminal is dmin = 0, and the transmission distance is the orbital altitude, then dmin = h.

[0054] During the transit of a low-Earth orbit satellite from point A to point B, the ground coverage area of ​​the beam formed by the spaceborne phased array antenna is related to the beamwidth of the spaceborne phased array antenna. Assuming the number of subarray elements corresponding to a single beam of the spaceborne phased array antenna is N·N, and the number of working elements in the antenna is N′(ψ)·N′(ψ) when the beam pointing angle is ψ (N′(ψ)≤N), then the beamwidth of a single beam is expressed as:

[0055]

[0056] According to equation (5), as the beam pointing angle ψ increases, cosψ decreases. To keep θ(ψ) constant, the value of N′(ψ) is not limited to gradually increasing; that is, the number of working antenna elements is continuously increased. By adopting the method of adjusting the number of antenna working elements based on the real-time beam pointing angle, the beamwidth is kept constant during beam staring. The change in the beam coverage area is very small, and it is always within the preset area. This avoids the problem of user terminals being located within the coverage area of ​​multiple beams simultaneously due to changes in the beam coverage area, thus preventing interference from different beams in service reception.

[0057] Regarding the value of N′(ψ), since the range of ψ is 0 ≤ ψ ≤ ψmax, assuming that the number of antenna working elements is N when the beam scanning angle is ψmax, then N′(ψmax) = N. Without limiting N′(ψ) to a positive integer, by definition, N′(ψ) is expressed as:

[0058]

[0059] In equation (6), This indicates the rounding up operation.

[0060] During the transit of a low-Earth orbit satellite from point A to point B, the satellite-to-ground transmission distance undergoes a process from dmax to dmin = h and then back to dmax. To ensure a relatively stable received signal level at the user terminal, the calculation method for PFD is not limited to keeping the satellite's transmit power flux density (PFD) constant, but is not limited to the method shown in equation (7).

[0061]

[0062] In equation (7), P(ψ)=Pele(ψ)+10·log10(N′(ψ)) is the transmit power of a single beam, and Pele(ψ) is the transmit power of a single element in the subarray; G(ψ)=Gmaxcos(ψ) 1·2 , where is the transmit gain of a single beam, and Gmax is the transmit gain of the antenna when the beam pointing angle is ψ = 0. This gain is a known parameter of the phased array antenna.

[0063] During beam staring, the number of antenna working units N′(ψ) is calculated using equation (6) based on the real-time beam pointing angle ψ, and G(ψ) is also calculated. Therefore, according to equation (7), by changing the value of Pele(ψ), that is, the transmit power of each antenna unit, PFD(ψ) can be kept constant during beam scanning, thereby making the received level of the user terminal relatively stable, thus providing a relatively stable signal-to-noise ratio for back-end demodulation.

[0064] It should be noted that, for the sake of simplicity, the foregoing method embodiments are all described as a series of actions. However, those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention is not limited to the described order of actions, because according to the present invention, some steps can be performed in other orders or simultaneously. Furthermore, those skilled in the art should also understand that the embodiments described in the specification are preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily essential to the present invention.

[0065] According to another aspect of the present invention, a low-Earth orbit satellite ground-beam staring device for implementing the above-described low-Earth orbit satellite ground-beam staring method is also provided. For example... Figure 3As shown, the device includes:

[0066] The coverage area control unit 302 is used to adjust the beam width of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, so as to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. The target beam provides services to the terminal at the target Earth surface position, and the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal. The beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time.

[0067] The transmit power flux density control unit 304 is used to adjust the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, so as to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position.

[0068] Optionally, the aforementioned coverage area control unit 302 adjusts the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, including: calculating the number of antenna working units in real time based on the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam in real time by adjusting the number of antenna working units in real time, wherein the number of antenna working units is the number of antenna units in the spaceborne phased array antenna that are in working state.

[0069] Optionally, the aforementioned coverage area control unit 302 calculates the number of antenna working units in real time based on the real-time beam pointing angle, including: calculating the number of antenna working units according to the reference antenna working unit number and beam pointing angle corresponding to the maximum beam pointing angle of the target beam, wherein the maximum beam pointing angle is the beam pointing angle at the start and end positions of the low-orbit satellite's transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position.

[0070] Optionally, the aforementioned coverage area control unit 302 adjusts the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface. This includes: determining the calculation relationship between the number of antenna working units and the beamwidth based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface, so as to control the ground coverage area to be within the preset area by adjusting the number of antenna working units in real time.

[0071] Optionally, the transmit power flux density control unit 304 adjusts the equivalent omnidirectional radiated power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, including: adjusting the transmit power and transmit gain of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiated power of the target beam in real time by adjusting the transmit power of the target beam in real time, wherein the transmit gain of the target beam is related to the number of antenna working units.

[0072] Optionally, the transmit power flux density control unit 304 adjusts the transmit power and transmit gain of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, including: calculating the transmit power of each antenna working unit in real time according to the beam pointing angle, and adjusting the transmit power of each antenna working unit in real time to adjust the transmit power of the target beam in real time.

[0073] Optionally, the transmit power flux density control unit 304 adjusts the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface within a preset density range. This includes: determining the calculation relationship between the transmit power of each antenna unit and the transmit power flux density of the target beam based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface; calculating the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time based on the beam pointing angle; and controlling the transmit power flux density within the preset density range by adjusting the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time.

[0074] In this embodiment, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-Earth orbit satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface to remain within a preset range. The equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam is also adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-Earth orbit satellite during its transit relative to the target Earth surface to remain within a preset density range. By adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam used to provide terminal services in real time based on the beam pointing angle, the ground coverage area of ​​the target beam remains relatively constant. By adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam, the transmit power flux density of the target beam remains relatively constant. This results in minimal variation in the received signal level of the terminal located at the target ground position, thus providing a relatively stable signal-to-noise ratio output to the candidate demodulator. This avoids the signal switching and interference issues caused by changes in beam coverage area and transmit power flux density, which can lead to the terminal switching between different beams of the low-Earth orbit satellite. This achieves the technical effect that the ground-based terminal is always covered by the same beam range of the low-Earth orbit satellite and can use the same beam for service communication. In turn, it solves the technical problem of service interruption caused by frequent beam switching within the low-Earth orbit satellite.

[0075] According to another aspect of the present invention, an electronic device for implementing the above-described low-Earth orbit satellite ground-beam staring method is also provided. This electronic device may be a terminal device or a server. Figure 4 As shown, the electronic device includes a memory 402 and a processor 404. The memory 402 stores a computer program, and the processor 404 is configured to execute the steps in any of the above method embodiments via the computer program.

[0076] Optionally, in this embodiment, the aforementioned electronic device may be located in at least one of a plurality of network devices in a computer network.

[0077] Optionally, in this embodiment, the processor can be configured to perform the following steps via a computer program:

[0078] S1, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within the preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. The target beam provides services to the terminal at the target Earth surface position, and the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal. The beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time.

[0079] S2 adjusts the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target's position on the Earth's surface.

[0080] Alternatively, as those skilled in the art will understand, Figure 4 The structure shown is for illustrative purposes only; the electronic device can be any terminal device. Figure 4 This does not limit the structure of the aforementioned electronic devices. For example, the electronic device may also include components that are more... Figure 4 The more or fewer components shown (such as network interfaces, etc.), or having the same Figure 4 The different configurations shown.

[0081] The memory 402 can be used to store software programs and modules, such as the program instructions / modules corresponding to the monitoring method and device for intelligent devices in this embodiment of the invention. The processor 404 executes various functional applications and data processing by running the software programs and modules stored in the memory 402, thereby realizing the aforementioned low-orbit satellite ground beam staring method. The memory 402 may include high-speed random access memory, and may also include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic storage devices, flash memory, or other non-volatile solid-state memory. In some instances, the memory 402 may further include memory remotely located relative to the processor 404, and these remote memories can be connected to the terminal via a network. Examples of such networks include, but are not limited to, the Internet, corporate intranets, local area networks, mobile communication networks, and combinations thereof. Specifically, the memory 402 may be used, but is not limited to, to store information such as beam pointing angle, beamwidth, ground coverage area, and transmit power flux density. As an example, such as Figure 4As shown, the memory 402 may include, but is not limited to, the coverage area control unit 302 and the transmit power flux density control unit 304 of the low-Earth orbit satellite ground-viewing device. Furthermore, it may include, but is not limited to, other module units of the low-Earth orbit satellite ground-viewing device, which will not be elaborated upon in this example.

[0082] Optionally, the transmission device 406 described above is used to receive or send data via a network. Specific examples of the network described above may include wired networks and wireless networks. In one example, the transmission device 406 includes a Network Interface Controller (NIC), which can be connected to other network devices and a router via a network cable to communicate with the Internet or a local area network. In another example, the transmission device 406 is a Radio Frequency (RF) module, used for wireless communication with the Internet.

[0083] In addition, the aforementioned electronic device also includes: a display 408 for displaying the beam pointing angle, beamwidth, ground coverage area, and transmit power flux density; and a connection bus 410 for connecting the various module components in the aforementioned electronic device.

[0084] In other embodiments, the aforementioned terminal device or server can be a node in a distributed system, wherein the distributed system can be a blockchain system, which is a distributed system formed by connecting multiple nodes through network communication. The nodes can form a peer-to-peer (P2P) network, and any form of computing device, such as a server, terminal, or other electronic device, can become a node in the blockchain system by joining this peer-to-peer network.

[0085] According to one aspect of this application, a computer program product or computer program is provided, comprising computer instructions stored in a computer-readable storage medium. A processor of a computer device reads the computer instructions from the computer-readable storage medium and executes the computer instructions, causing the computer device to perform the methods provided in the various alternative implementations of the low-Earth orbit satellite ground beam staring described above. The computer program is configured to execute the steps in any of the above method embodiments during runtime.

[0086] Optionally, in this embodiment, the computer-readable storage medium described above may be configured to store a computer program for performing the following steps:

[0087] S1, the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within the preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. The target beam provides services to the terminal at the target Earth surface position, and the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal. The beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time.

[0088] S2 adjusts the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target's position on the Earth's surface.

[0089] Optionally, in this embodiment, those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps in the various methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a program instructing the hardware related to the terminal device. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, which may include: flash drive, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), disk or optical disk, etc.

[0090] The sequence numbers of the above embodiments of the present invention are for descriptive purposes only and do not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0091] If the integrated units in the above embodiments are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause one or more computer devices (which may be computers, servers, or network devices, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present invention.

[0092] In the above embodiments of the present invention, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.

[0093] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed client can be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for example, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection between units or modules, and may be electrical or other forms.

[0094] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0095] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0096] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, several improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the principle of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications should also be considered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for low-orbit satellite ground-viewing beam staring, characterized in that, include: The beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. The target beam provides services to the terminal at the target Earth surface position, and the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal. The beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time. The method of adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the transmit power flux density of the low-Earth orbit satellite within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface includes: determining the calculation relationship between the transmit power of each antenna unit and the transmit power flux density of the target beam based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-Earth orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface; calculating the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time based on the beam pointing angle; and adjusting the equivalent omnidirectional radiation power of the target beam in real time by adjusting the transmit power of each antenna unit to control the transmit power flux density within the preset density range.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method of adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle includes: The number of antenna working units is calculated in real time based on the beam pointing angle, and the beamwidth of the target beam is adjusted in real time by adjusting the number of antenna working units. The number of antenna working units is the number of antenna units in the spaceborne phased array antenna that are in operation.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The real-time calculation of the number of antenna working units based on the real-time beam pointing angle includes: The number of antenna working units is calculated based on the number of reference antenna working units corresponding to the maximum beam pointing angle of the target beam and the beam pointing angle, wherein the maximum beam pointing angle is the beam pointing angle at the start and end positions of the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface position.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The method of adjusting the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle to control the Earth coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to remain within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position includes: Based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface, the calculation relationship between the number of antenna working units and the beam width is determined, so as to control the ground coverage area to be within the preset area by adjusting the number of antenna working units in real time.

5. A low-orbit satellite ground-viewing beam staring device, characterized in that, include: The coverage area control unit is used to adjust the beamwidth of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, so as to control the ground coverage area of ​​the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset area during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. The target beam provides services to the terminal at the target Earth surface position, the beam pointing angle is the real-time angle between the target beam and the beam pointing normal, and the beam pointing normal is aligned with the Earth's center in real time. A transmit power flux density control unit is used to adjust the equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam in real time based on the beam pointing angle, so as to control the transmit power flux density of the low-orbit satellite to be within a preset density range during its transit motion relative to the target Earth surface position. This includes: determining the calculation relationship between the transmit power of each antenna unit and the transmit power flux density of the target beam based on the change of the beam pointing angle during the transit motion of the low-orbit satellite relative to the target Earth surface position; calculating the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time based on the beam pointing angle; and adjusting the equivalent isotropic radiation power of the target beam in real time by adjusting the transmit power of each antenna unit in real time, so as to control the transmit power flux density to be within the preset density range.

6. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium includes a stored program, wherein the program, when executed, performs the method described in any one of claims 1 to 4.

7. An electronic device comprising a memory and a processor, characterized in that, The memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the method described in any one of claims 1 to 4 through the computer program.

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