Low cost VSAT MMIC transceiver with automatic power control
First Claim
1. A very small aperture terminal (VSAT) transceiver used in a VSAT terminal that communicates with a transponder of a satellite comprising:
- a ceramic substrate board;
a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit operative at ka-band and including a local oscillator circuit and mixer for mixing local oscillator signals, formed on the ceramic substrate board, and each having microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) chips; and
a microcontroller operatively connected to said MMIC chips and operative for controlling transceiver gain and output power based upon one or both of the received signal strength and the signal-to-noise information from an indoor unit of the VSAT terminal;
a soft circuit board as a controller board and mounting the microcontroller, and including DC components;
contact connectors connecting circuits on the ceramic substrate board and circuits on the soft circuit board as the controller board; and
a housing enclosing the ceramic substrate board and soft circuit board.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A very small aperture terminal (VSAT) transceiver of a VSAT terminal has a ceramic substrate board with transmitter, receiver and local oscillator circuits, including microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) chips positioned on the ceramic substrate board. A microcontroller is operative with the MMIC chips and an indoor unit of the VSAT terminal for controlling transceiver gain and output power. The microcontroller monitors one or both of the received signal strength of a signal received from a satellite in communication therewith and the signal-to-noise information from the indoor unit. The transceiver gain and output power is controlled by the microcontroller based on the received signal strength and/or the signal-to-noise information from the indoor unit.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A very small aperture terminal (VSAT) transceiver used in a VSAT terminal that communicates with a transponder of a satellite comprising:
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a ceramic substrate board; a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit operative at ka-band and including a local oscillator circuit and mixer for mixing local oscillator signals, formed on the ceramic substrate board, and each having microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) chips; and a microcontroller operatively connected to said MMIC chips and operative for controlling transceiver gain and output power based upon one or both of the received signal strength and the signal-to-noise information from an indoor unit of the VSAT terminal; a soft circuit board as a controller board and mounting the microcontroller, and including DC components; contact connectors connecting circuits on the ceramic substrate board and circuits on the soft circuit board as the controller board; and a housing enclosing the ceramic substrate board and soft circuit board. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A very small aperture terminal (VSAT) transceiver used in a VSAT terminal that communicates with a transponder of a satellite comprising:
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a housing; a ceramic substrate board mounted within the housing; a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit operative at ka-band and including a local oscillator circuit and mixers for mixing local oscillator signals, formed on the ceramic substrate board, and each having microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) chips; a controller board formed from a reinforced PTFE composite and having surface mounted DC and low frequency discrete devices thereon and mounted within the housing; a microcontroller surface mounted on the controller board operatively connected to said MMIC chips and operative for controlling transceiver gain and output power based upon one or both of the received signal strength and the signal-to-noise information from an indoor unit of the VSAT terminal; and a solderless contact connector electrically interconnecting circuits on the controller board and ceramic substrate board. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of controlling the power output from a very small aperture terminal (VSAT) of a VSAT communications system comprising the steps of:
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receiving a signal within a VSAT terminal that is in communication with a transponder of a satellite, the VSAT terminal further comprising an indoor unit and an outdoor unit including a VSAT transceiver comprising a ceramic substrate board having transmitter and receiver circuits, each transmitter and receiver circuit having a microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) chips, and a microcontroller mounted on a soft circuit board as a controller board and having circuits interconnecting circuits on the ceramic substrate board using contact connectors, and operative with the MMIC chips and the indoor unit for controlling transceiver gain and output power; monitoring within the microcontroller one or both of the received signal strength of a signal received from the satellite in communication therewith and signal-to-noise information from the indoor unit; controlling transceiver gain and output power based on one or both of the received signal strength and the signal-to-noise information from the indoor unit; and further comprising the steps of mounting the ceramic substrate board having MMIC chips within a housing, mounting the controller board formed from reinforced PTFE composites and having surface mounted DC and low frequency discrete devices and the microcontroller within the housing, and electrically interconnecting for circuit function the ceramic substrate board and controller board with a solderless contact connector. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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Specification