SDR Spot Beam Reconfiguration for Small GEO Satellite Throughput
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current commercial communication satellites are large, expensive, and inflexible, requiring years to develop and launch, leading to inefficiencies and high costs due to their static nature, making them unsuitable for adapting to changing conditions or providing on-demand coverage.
Innovation Solution
A payload system for small GEO communication satellites utilizing a Software-Defined Radio (SDR) system that allows for post-deployment adjustments in communication parameters, such as carrier frequency, beamwidth, channelization, and network topology, enabling flexible and adaptive communication coverage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If commercial satellites are designed to provide 50 to 100 spot beams with large capacity, then the satellite can cover large populations and provide extensive communication services, but it takes over a decade to fully lease the satellite and creates significant inefficiencies with unused capacity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by enabling the satellite to dynamically reconfigure its beam patterns and communication parameters post-deployment. The satellite can transition between providing many spot beams for large populations and fewer, more concentrated beams for smaller markets, adapting to changing market conditions and demand patterns over time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by allowing modification of communication parameters such as beamwidth, carrier frequency, and network topology after deployment. This enables the satellite to optimize its capacity allocation based on actual market demand, reducing the time to fully lease by matching capacity to real-time needs.
2Adaptability or versatility
If commercial satellites are custom-built with carrier frequencies, beamwidths, modulation protocols, and network topology specified by an operator, then the satellite provides dedicated services, but it takes over five years to develop and launch the satellite
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a satellite platform that can serve multiple operators and service types without requiring custom-built satellites for each operator. The standardized platform with reconfigurable parameters provides dedicated services to different operators through software configuration rather than hardware customization, dramatically reducing development time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-configuring the satellite with reconfigurable parameters and modular architecture before launch. This allows the satellite to be deployed quickly and then customized for specific operators post-deployment, reversing the traditional approach where customization occurs during the lengthy development phase.
3Adaptability or versatility
If commercial satellites are relatively large in size, then the satellite provides sufficient capacity for multiple licensees, but it becomes difficult or impossible to reposition or repoint the satellite
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by enabling the satellite to dynamically adjust its beam pointing directions and coverage areas through software control. Rather than physically repositioning the entire satellite, the system can electronically steer beams to different locations, providing repositioning capability without the complexity and cost of physical maneuvering large satellite structures.
4Reliability
If commercial satellites are designed with fixed parameters, then the satellite provides stable and reliable service, but it cannot adapt to changing conditions or provide on-demand coverage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements parameter changes by allowing dynamic modification of communication parameters including carrier frequency, beamwidth, modulation protocols, and network topology. These changes can be made post-deployment to adapt to changing market conditions, weather patterns, or service requirements while maintaining reliable operation through controlled transitions and validation procedures.
Data Source
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AI summary
Disclosed embodiments relate satellites using a Software-Defined Radio ("SDR") system. In one example, a geostationary (GEO) satellite includes an antenna system including multiple antennas, each configured to provide a spot beam having an adjustable throughput for a terrestrial coverage area while the antenna is in an active state and the satellite is in orbit above the Earth, a front-end subsystem communicatively coupled to the antenna system having an input side including an input filter and an analog-to-digital converter, and an output side including an output filter and a digital-to-analog converter, and a software defined radio ("SDR") communicatively coupled to the antenna system via the front-end subsystem. The SDR, in response to a surge modification request, modifies a throughput of each active antenna by increasing or decreasing a share of a satellite power budget allotted to the antenna by deactivating or activating a previously active or previously inactive antenna, respectively.