Centralized Antenna Scheduling for Satellite Ground Stations
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Solution Overview
Problem
The high cost and resource intensity of building and maintaining multiple satellite ground station antennas for communication with satellites lead to underutilization of available communication time, resulting in delays in servicing requests from multiple satellite owners.
Innovation Solution
A centralized scheduling service within a compute service provider network that leverages unused operational time on existing antennas by identifying compatible antennas and reserving time slots for communication requests, allowing clients to use remote antennas for satellite communication without the need for individual antenna ownership or maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a single ground station antenna is used to service multiple satellite owners, then infrastructure cost is reduced, but communication request servicing delays increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a centralized ground station antenna that serves multiple satellite owners through a scheduling service. The antenna is allocated to different clients at different time slots, allowing one physical infrastructure to handle multiple communication requests sequentially. This multi-functional use of the antenna reduces the need for each client to maintain separate infrastructure while the scheduling service manages time allocation to prevent conflicts and minimize delays.
2Loss of time
If additional antennas and ground stations are built to service multiple satellite owners, then communication request delays are reduced, but infrastructure cost and resource intensity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple satellite communication functions into a single ground station antenna through a centralized scheduling service. Instead of each satellite owner maintaining separate antennas, the system merges their communication needs into one shared infrastructure. The scheduling service coordinates and consolidates communication requests, allocating time slots to different clients, thereby reducing the total number of antennas needed while maintaining service quality.
3Productivity
If a centralized scheduling service is implemented to optimize antenna usage, then satellite access availability increases, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a centralized scheduling service as an intermediary between satellite owners and the ground station antenna. This mediator receives communication requests from multiple clients, determines optimal time slots based on satellite visibility and antenna availability, and coordinates the antenna allocation. The scheduling service manages the complexity of coordinating multiple users while maximizing antenna utilization, thereby increasing satellite access availability without requiring each client to directly manage the antenna.
Data Source
AI summary
A matchmaking service can match a satellite owner/operator with antennas that are available and capable of servicing a communication request from the satellite owner/operator (e.g., to exchange data with the satellite owner/operator's satellite). The communication request may be received at a ground station service, and information included therein may be compared to capabilities of antennas registered with the ground station service to determine antennas that are compatible with the request. The ground station service may reserve a time slot for a selected compatible antenna to service the request and control the selected compatible antenna (e.g., to track and communicate with the satellite) during the time slot. In some embodiments, the matchmaking of satellite owners/operators to antennas uses models to determine communication parameters for a communication request and to determine capabilities of antennas registered with the ground station.