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JP-2026514340-A - Unidirectional crosslink in satellite communication systems

JP2026514340AJP 2026514340 AJP2026514340 AJP 2026514340AJP-2026514340-A

Abstract

Satellites in a communication system may be equipped with a phased array antenna system, including various configurations of antenna arrays. One or more first satellites may be configured as part of a forward link signaling to relay forward link signaling from a gateway terminal to a user terminal. One or more second satellites may be configured as part of a return link path to relay return link signaling from a user terminal to a gateway terminal. The first satellite, the second satellite, or both may include at least one crosslink relay configured to receive signaling from the first satellite via a receiving antenna array on a first side of the crosslink relay within the crosslink frequency band, and to transmit signaling to the second satellite via a transmitting antenna array on a second side of the crosslink relay within the crosslink frequency band. [Selection Diagram] Figure 6

Inventors

  • ビューアー，ケネス ヴイ．

Assignees

  • ヴィアサット，インコーポレイテッド

Dates

Publication Date
20260511
Application Date
20240314
Priority Date
20230317

Claims (20)

  1. A method for satellite communications, During the duration, configure a user terminal (150) for bidirectional communication, During the duration, one or more first satellites (120) are configured along the forward path (610) to relay the first signaling of the bidirectional communication to the user terminal (150), During the duration, the configuration includes configuring one or more second satellites (120), excluding the one or more first satellites (120), along the return path (620) to relay the second signaling of the bidirectional communication from the user terminal (150), At least one of the one or more first satellites (120) or the one or more second satellites (120) is used as a crosslink relay, Within a first frequency band, the first signaling or the second signaling is received from the crosslink transmitting satellite (120) via a first antenna array (260) on the first side of at least one satellite (120). A method configured to transmit the first signaling or the second signaling to a crosslink receiving satellite (120) via a second antenna array (270, 250) on a second side of at least one satellite (120), which is different from the first side, within the first frequency band.
  2. Configuring one of the one or more first satellites (120) to relay the first signaling includes configuring the first satellite (120) to steer, at least partially, based on the orientation of the side of the first satellite (120) with respect to the service area location throughout the duration, Configuring one of the one or more second satellites (120) to relay the second signaling includes configuring the second satellite (120) to steer throughout the duration based at least partially on the orientation of a first side of the second satellite (120) to the service area location and the orientation of a second side of the second satellite (120) to the location of at least one satellite (120), The method according to claim 1, wherein configuring the at least one satellite (120) includes configuring a third satellite (120) of the at least one satellite (120) to steer at least partially on basis of the orientation of the side of the at least one satellite (120) relative to the location of the second satellite (120) or the location of the first satellite (120) throughout the duration.
  3. Configuring the first satellite (120) to relay the first signaling includes configuring the first satellite (120) to transmit the first signaling to the user terminal (150) using a first transmit beam (125) of the antenna array of the first satellite (120) located on the side of the first satellite (120), which is formed along a first direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the side of the first satellite (120), The second satellite (120) is configured to relay the second signaling. The second satellite (120) is configured to receive the second signaling from the user terminal (150) using the first receiving beam (125) of the first antenna array (260) of the second satellite (120), which is located on the first side of the second satellite (120), and which is formed along a second direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the first side of the second satellite (120). The second satellite (120) is configured to transmit the second signaling to one of the at least one satellite (120) using the second transmit beam (125) of the second antenna array (270) of the second satellite (120), which is located on the second side of the second satellite (120) and is formed along a third direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the second side of the second satellite (120). The method according to claim 2, wherein configuring the third satellite (120) includes configuring the third satellite (120) to receive the second signaling from the second satellite (120) using the second receiving beam (125) of the antenna array of the third satellite (120) located on the first side of the third satellite (120), which is formed along a fourth direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the side of the third satellite (120).
  4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the orientation of the second side portion of the second satellite (120) is different from the orientation of the first side portion of the second satellite (120).
  5. During the duration, the fourth satellite (120) among the one or more first satellites (120) is configured to relay the first signaling. Configuring the first satellite (120) to relay the first signaling includes configuring the first satellite (120) to steer throughout the duration based at least partially on the orientation of the second side of the first satellite (120) relative to the location of the fourth satellite (120), The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein configuring the fourth satellite (120) to relay the first signaling is such that the fourth satellite (120) is steered throughout the duration based at least partially on the orientation of the side of the fourth satellite (120) relative to the location of the first satellite (120).
  6. Configuring the first satellite (120) to relay the first signaling includes configuring the first satellite (120) to transmit the first signaling to the user terminal (150) within a second frequency band excluding the first frequency band, Configuring the second satellite (120) to relay the second signaling includes configuring the second satellite (120) to receive the second signaling from the user terminal (150) in a third frequency band excluding the first frequency band and the second frequency band, and to transmit the second signaling in the first frequency band to at least one of the one or more second satellites (120), The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein configuring the third satellite (120) to relay the second signaling includes configuring the third satellite (120) to receive the second signaling from the second satellite (120) within the first frequency band.
  7. The second satellite (120) is configured to relay the second signaling. The method according to claim 6, comprising configuring the second satellite (120) to implement a signal path (505) associated with frequency conversion between the third frequency band and the first frequency band.
  8. The first satellite (120) is configured in a first non-geostationary orbit, The method according to any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the second satellite (120) is configured in a second non-geostationary orbit different from the second non-geostationary orbit.
  9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the orientation of the second side of the at least one satellite (120) is perpendicular to the orientation of the first side of the at least one satellite (120).
  10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the orientation of the second side of the at least one satellite (120) is opposite to the orientation of the first side of the at least one satellite (120).
  11. Configuring one or more first satellites (120) to relay the first signaling includes transmitting the first configuration signaling from the ground segment (101) to the one or more first satellites (120), The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein configuring one or more second satellites (120) to relay the second signaling includes transmitting a second configuration signaling from the ground segment (101) to the one or more second satellites (120).
  12. During the aforementioned duration, a gateway terminal (130) is configured to transmit the first signaling, The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, further comprising configuring the gateway terminal (130) to receive the second signaling during the duration.
  13. During the aforementioned duration, a first gateway terminal (130) is configured to transmit the first signaling, The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, further comprising configuring a second gateway terminal (130) different from the first gateway terminal (130) to receive the second signaling during the duration.
  14. It is a system for satellite communications, During the duration, means for configuring a user terminal (150) for bidirectional communication, During the duration, means for configuring one or more first satellites (120) along the forward path to relay the first signaling of the bidirectional communication to the user terminal (150), During the duration, the system includes means for configuring one or more second satellites (120), excluding one or more first satellites (120), along the return path to relay the second signaling of the bidirectional communication from the user terminal (150), At least one of the one or more first satellites (120) or the one or more second satellites (120) is used as a cross-link relay, Within a first frequency band, the first signaling or the second signaling is received from the crosslink transmitting satellite (120) via a first antenna array (260) on the first side of at least one satellite (120). A system configured to transmit either the first signaling or the second signaling to a crosslink receiving satellite (120) via a second antenna array (270) on a second side of at least one satellite (120), which is different from the first side, within the first frequency band.
  15. The means for configuring one of the one or more first satellites (120) to relay the first signaling is to steer the first satellite (120) over the duration based at least partially on the orientation of the side of the first satellite (120) with respect to the service area location, Configuring one of the one or more second satellites (120) to relay the second signaling includes configuring the second satellite (120) to steer throughout the duration based at least partially on the orientation of a first side of the second satellite (120) to the service area location and the orientation of a second side of the second satellite (120) to the location of at least one satellite (120), The system according to claim 14, wherein configuring the at least one satellite (120) includes configuring a third satellite (120) of the at least one satellite (120) to steer at least partially on basis of the orientation of the side of the at least one satellite (120) relative to the location of the second satellite (120) or the location of the first satellite (120) throughout the duration.
  16. The means for configuring the first satellite (120) to relay the first signaling includes a first transmit beam (125) of the antenna array of the first satellite (120) located on the side of the first satellite (120), which is formed along a first direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the side of the first satellite (120), and means for configuring the first satellite (120) to transmit the first signaling to the user terminal (150). The means for configuring the second satellite (120) to relay the second signaling is, Means for configuring the second satellite (120) to receive the second signaling from the user terminal (150) using the first receiving beam (125) of the first antenna array (260) of the second satellite (120) located on the first side of the second satellite (120), which is formed along a second direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the first side of the second satellite (120), The means for configuring the second satellite (120) to transmit the second signaling to one of the at least one satellite (120) using the second transmit beam (125) of the second antenna array (270) of the second satellite (120) located on the second side of the second satellite (120), which is formed along a third direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the second side of the second satellite (120), The system according to claim 15, wherein the means for configuring the third satellite (120) includes means for configuring the third satellite (120) to receive the second signaling from the second satellite (120) using the second receive beam (125) of the antenna array of the third satellite (120) located on the first side of the third satellite (120), which is formed along a fourth direction (127) with respect to the orientation of the side of the third satellite (120).
  17. The system according to claim 16, wherein the orientation of the second side of the second satellite (120) is different from the orientation of the first side of the second satellite (120).
  18. During the duration, the system further comprises means for configuring a fourth satellite (120) among the one or more first satellites (120) to relay the first signaling, To relay the first signaling, the means for configuring the first satellite (120) includes means for configuring the first satellite (120) such that it steers throughout the duration on at least partially based on the orientation of the second side of the first satellite (120) relative to the location of the fourth satellite (120), The system according to any one of claims 15 to 17, wherein the means for configuring the fourth satellite (120) to relay the first signaling includes means for configuring the fourth satellite (120) such that it steers throughout the duration on at least partially based on the orientation of the side of the fourth satellite (120) with respect to the location of the first satellite (120).
  19. The means for configuring the first satellite (120) to relay the first signaling includes means for configuring the first satellite (120) to transmit the first signaling to the user terminal (150) within a second frequency band excluding the first frequency band, To relay the second signaling, the means for configuring the second satellite (120) includes means for configuring the second satellite (120) such that it receives the second signaling from the user terminal (150) in a third frequency band excluding the first frequency band and the second frequency band, and transmits the second signaling in the first frequency band to at least one of the one or more second satellites (120), The system according to any one of claims 15 to 18, wherein the means for configuring the third satellite (120) to relay the second signaling includes means for configuring the third satellite (120) to receive the second signaling from the second satellite (120) within the first frequency band.
  20. The means for configuring the second satellite (120) to relay the second signaling is, The system according to claim 19, comprising means for configuring the second satellite (120) to implement a signal path (505) associated with frequency conversion between the third frequency band and the first frequency band.

Description

Cross-reference This patent application claims the interests and priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/491,022, filed on 17 March 2023, entitled “LOW EARTH ORBIT SATELLITE SYSTEM,” which has been assigned to the assignee of this Spec. The entire Provisional Patent Application is expressly incorporated herein by reference. The following concerns communication systems, including techniques for unidirectional crosslinking in satellite communication systems. In some communication systems, ground-based terminals may support wireless signaling of communication services via a constellation of satellites, which may include satellites in their respective non-geostationary orbits (NGSO), such as low Earth orbit (LEO) or medium Earth orbit (MEO). For example, a satellite in such a system may be configured with one or more antennas to support communication with or between ground segment terminals (e.g., gateway terminals, user terminals), and may support various forms of reconfiguration for carrying out communications as the satellite traverses its orbital path (e.g., for communication with different terminals or different locations). Some NGSO satellite communication systems may implement a relatively large number of satellites to maintain quality of service, such as continuous service coverage for user terminals via one or more satellites in the constellation. To support the deployment of a relatively large number of satellites (e.g., in an NGSO satellite communication system), various design trade-offs, including cost, complexity, performance, power consumption, reliability, weight, size, form factor, and others, are considered among satellite characteristics. The techniques described relate to communication systems, including systems that can implement satellites in non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) to support wireless signaling of communication services. Such communication systems may include one or more satellites that support relaying signals between target devices, such as signals between a gateway terminal and a user terminal. For example, a satellite in a satellite communication system may support receiving uplink signals (e.g., forward uplink signals from a gateway terminal, return uplink signals from a user terminal) and transmitting downlink signals (e.g., forward downlink signals to a user terminal, return downlink signals to a gateway terminal) based on the received uplink signals (e.g., according to a vent pipe payload configuration, according to a processing payload configuration). In some implementations, signals in a satellite communication system may be relayed through multiple satellites in a constellation so that one or more satellites in the satellite communication system can support receiving crosslink signals (e.g., from another satellite), transmitting crosslink signals (e.g., to another satellite), or both. A communications satellite in a satellite communications system may be equipped with an antenna system including various configurations of antenna arrays for receiving and transmitting signals, and a transponder system coupled to such an antenna array configured to route signals between one or more receiving ports (e.g., of the receiving system) and one or more transmitting ports (e.g., of the transmitting system) of the antenna system. In some examples, the antenna array or associated circuitry may be configured to perform directional receiving (e.g., receiving beamforming), directional transmitting (e.g., transmitting beamforming), or both, along one or more directions (e.g., beam directions, one or more directions simultaneously, or one or more directions according to a beam-hopping configuration). In some examples, the transponder system between the array for receiving signals and the array for transmitting signals may perform one or more aspects of signal processing, such as frequency conversion, demodulation or modulation, multiplexing, signal extraction or insertion, analog-to-digital conversion or digital-to-analog conversion, or other examples of signal processing. To support payloads that can be efficiently implemented on a relatively large number of satellites (for example, in the NGSO satellite communications system), a satellite may be configured with a specific combination of components of a receiving system (e.g., one or more receiving antenna systems, one or more receiving subsystems), a transmitting system (e.g., one or more transmitting antenna systems, one or more transmitting subsystems), and a transponder system between the receiving and transmitting systems (e.g., for supporting various forms of relayed communications). For example, according to the examples disclosed herein, a satellite may include a receiving system having one or more antenna elements (e.g., receiving elements, direct-radiating antenna elements, receiving arrays, panel arrays, phased arrays) on the faces of the satellite (e.g., the sides, nadir faces of the satellite) and a transmittin