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Satellite performance monitoring

  • US 8,576,118 B2
  • Filed: 01/28/2009
  • Issued: 11/05/2013
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2008
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A method used on a satellite communication system, wherein the satellite communications system includes a satellite, at least one gateway terminal and a plurality of user terminals, the method comprising:

  • measuring, at the at least one gateway terminal, a total receive power of a signal received from the satellite under normal operating conditions;

    measuring one of a signal-only power and a signal-to-noise-plus-interference ratio (S1NR) for a signal received from the satellite under normal operating conditions;

    measuring a total thermal noise component of the signal received from the satellite during a first quiet interval where uplink transmission from the at least one gateway and the plurality of user terminals have been disabled;

    measuring a first out-of-band downlink thermal noise component and a first in-band downlink thermal noise component while the satellite is in a transmission disabled state;

    determining a compensation factor using the first in-band downlink thermal noise component and the first out-of-band downlink thermal noise component;

    measuring a second out-of-band downlink thermal noise component while the satellite is under normal operating conditions;

    estimating a second in-band downlink thermal noise component of the signal received from the satellite by multiplying the second out-of-band downlink thermal noise component by the compensation factor; and

    calculating satellite communication system operating parameters during satellite operation using the total receive power, the signal-only power or the SINR, measurements of the total thermal noise component, and the second in-band downlink thermal noise component for monitoring the performance of the satellite communication system in which the satellite is operating.

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