Cellular interferometer for continuous earth remote observation (CICERO)
First Claim
1. A system for generating a set of Earth observations comprising:
- a constellation of at least three satellites, wherein;
(i) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes;
a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) antenna to receive a GNSS signal;
(ii) at least two satellites in the constellation of satellites individually include;
a first crosslink antenna that points in a first direction,wherein a first crosslink module feeds a first received signal from the first crosslink antenna to a digital signal processor; and
a second crosslink antenna that points in a second direction opposite the first direction,wherein a second crosslink module feeds a second received signal from the second crosslink antenna to the digital signal processor; and
(iii) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes a down-looking receiving antenna;
wherein the first crosslink module is programmed to conduct an encoding of a first transmission signal for transmission in the first direction;
wherein the second crosslink module is programmed to conduct an encoding of a second transmission signal for transmission in the second direction;
wherein the encoding of the first transmission signal and the encoding of the second transmission signal use a unique code;
wherein the unique code is unique to the satellite; and
wherein the system processes recorded data from the constellation of at least three satellites to generate the set of Earth observations;
wherein the system determines a first distance and a second distance using the GNSS signal, the first transmission signal, and the second transmission signal; and
wherein at least one Earth observation in the set of Earth observations is derived from the first distance and the second distance.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A fleet of small spacecraft (“cells”) in low Earth orbit combine to form an integrated Earth observing system providing many observations previously requiring distinct sensing systems. Each cell performs a few relatively primitive functions, including emission, reception, sampling, and recording of radio and microwave signals. Each cell observes over a spherical field of view, samples the received signals independently at many small antenna elements, and stores the data from each element. Data from all cells are sent to a common location where they can be combined in diverse ways to realize a wide range of observing functions. These functions may include ionosphere and gravity field mapping; atmospheric radio occultation; ocean, ice, and land altimetry; ocean scatterometry; synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging; radar sensing of soil moisture, land cover, and geological surface properties; and interferometric SAR sensing of surface change. The system can also provide real-time messaging, navigation and surveillance functions.
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Citations
32 Claims
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1. A system for generating a set of Earth observations comprising:
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a constellation of at least three satellites, wherein; (i) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes; a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) antenna to receive a GNSS signal; (ii) at least two satellites in the constellation of satellites individually include; a first crosslink antenna that points in a first direction, wherein a first crosslink module feeds a first received signal from the first crosslink antenna to a digital signal processor; and a second crosslink antenna that points in a second direction opposite the first direction, wherein a second crosslink module feeds a second received signal from the second crosslink antenna to the digital signal processor; and (iii) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes a down-looking receiving antenna; wherein the first crosslink module is programmed to conduct an encoding of a first transmission signal for transmission in the first direction; wherein the second crosslink module is programmed to conduct an encoding of a second transmission signal for transmission in the second direction; wherein the encoding of the first transmission signal and the encoding of the second transmission signal use a unique code; wherein the unique code is unique to the satellite; and wherein the system processes recorded data from the constellation of at least three satellites to generate the set of Earth observations; wherein the system determines a first distance and a second distance using the GNSS signal, the first transmission signal, and the second transmission signal; and wherein at least one Earth observation in the set of Earth observations is derived from the first distance and the second distance. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A system for generating a set of Earth observations, comprising:
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a constellation of at least three satellites, wherein; (i) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) antenna to receive a GNSS signal; (ii) at least two satellites in the constellation of satellites individually include a first crosslink antenna that points in a first direction, wherein a first crosslink module feeds a first received signal from the first crosslink antenna to a digital signal processor; and a second crosslink antenna that points in a second direction opposite the first direction, wherein a second crosslink module feeds a second received signal from the second crosslink antenna to the digital signal processor; and (iii) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes a down-looking receiving antenna wherein the first crosslink module is programmed to; (i) conduct an encoding of a first transmission signal for transmission in the first direction using a first code; and (ii) distinguish the first received signal from a third received signal received from the first direction based on a second code; wherein the second crosslink module is programmed to; (i) conduct an encoding of a second transmission signal for transmission in the second direction using the first code; and (ii) distinguish the second received signal from a fourth received signal received from the second direction based on a third code; wherein the first code is a unique code that is unique to the satellite; wherein the system processes recorded data from the constellation of at least three satellites to generate the set of Earth observations; and wherein the recorded data is derived from the first transmission signal and the second transmission signal. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A system for generating a set of Earth observations, comprising:
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a constellation of at least three satellites, wherein; (i) each satellite in the constellation of satellites includes a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) antenna to receive a GNSS signal; (ii) at least two satellites in the constellation of satellites individually include a first crosslink antenna that points in a first direction, wherein a first crosslink module feeds a first received signal from the first crosslink antenna to a digital signal processor; and a second crosslink antenna that points in a second direction opposite the first direction, wherein a second crosslink module feeds a second received signal from the second crosslink antenna to the digital signal processor; and (iii) each satellite in the constellation of satellites individually includes a down-looking receiving antenna; and wherein the first crosslink module is programmed to conduct an encoding of a first transmission signal for transmission in the first direction; wherein the second crosslink module is programmed to conduct an encoding of a second transmission signal for transmission in the second direction; wherein the system processes recorded data from the constellation of at least three satellites to generate the set of Earth observations; and wherein the recorded data is derived from the first transmission signal and the second transmission signal. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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Specification