Dynamic Beam Placement via Clique Grouping for Satellite Coverage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for placing beams to cover multiple locations on Earth, such as those used in satellite communications, are inefficient due to static beam placement and 'follow the remote' configurations, which lead to underutilization of bandwidth and insufficient coverage for mobile terminals like those on ships or aircraft.
Innovation Solution
A method that groups locations into cliques using an undirected graph and assigns beams to each clique, minimizing the number of beams needed through clique problem resolution techniques, allowing for efficient and dynamic beam placement and simulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If static beam placement is used to cover fixed regions, then beam coverage is stable, but bandwidth utilization is inefficient when terminals move
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic beam placement where beams are reassigned to different geographic regions based on real-time terminal locations. The system continuously monitors terminal positions and dynamically adjusts beam coverage areas, allowing the same physical beam resources to serve different regions as terminals move, thereby maintaining high bandwidth utilization while providing stable communication coverage.
2Reliability
If 'follow the remote' configuration is used with a single beam per terminal, then each terminal receives dedicated coverage, but bandwidth is underutilized as terminals consume only a fraction of beam capacity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple terminal service requirements into shared beam coverage. Instead of dedicating one beam per terminal, the system consolidates terminals into groups that can be served by common beams, allowing multiple terminals to share the same beam resources simultaneously. This merging approach maintains reliable coverage for each terminal while significantly improving overall bandwidth utilization through resource sharing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes beam resources universal by enabling each beam to serve multiple terminals across different geographic regions at different times. The same beam infrastructure is used to provide dedicated coverage to various terminals as they move, making the beam resources multi-functional rather than single-purpose, thereby improving both coverage reliability and bandwidth efficiency.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the number of beams is increased to cover all regions through which terminals move, then coverage completeness improves, but system complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses dynamic beam assignment to achieve complete coverage without proportionally increasing the number of physical beams. By dynamically repositioning and reassigning existing beams to follow terminal locations, the system achieves comprehensive coverage adaptability while maintaining a limited, manageable number of beam resources, thereby avoiding excessive system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, carried out by a processing device(s), is used for assisting in placing beams to cover a plurality of locations on Earth. The method comprises: grouping the plurality of locations into cliques by applying a clique problem resolution technique to an undirected graph whose vertices correspond to the plurality of locations and wherein two vertices of the undirected graph are connected by an edge if they correspond to two locations that are regarded as coverable by a single beam; assigning a beam to each of at least some of the cliques; and outputting parameters usable to control at least one beam source to form the assigned beams. The invention also relates to a system, computer program products, and a method and system for simulating a beam placement.