Methods and systems for increasing bandwidth efficiency in satellite communications

• US 10,554,471 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2019
• Issued: 02/04/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intelsat US, LLC (Reorganized ISA SA)
• Original Assignee: Intelsat US, LLC (Reorganized ISA SA)
• Inventors: Yaghmour, Salim M K, Cannon, Virgil Marvin Bernard
• Primary Examiner(s): Vuong, Quochien B
• Application Number:
  US16/448,717
• Publication Number:
  US 20190312768A1
• Time in Patent Office: 228 Days
• Field of Search: 455 302, 455 111, 455 121, 455427
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/1027 assessing signal quality or detecting noise/interference for the received signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/66 for reducing bandwidth of signals; for improving efficiency of transmission H04B1/68 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/1054 by changing bandwidth
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18513 Transmission in a satellite or space-based system
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18515 Transmission equipment in satellites or space-based relays
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18517 Transmission equipment in earth stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/423 Transmitter side
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/51 specially adapted for satellite broadcast systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/74 of satellite networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/90 specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0003 by switching between different modulation schemes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0009 by adapting the channel coding H04L1/1812 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/3405 Modifications of the signal space to increase the efficiency of transmission, e.g. reduction of the bit error rate, bandwidth, or average power
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/06 Airborne or Satellite Networks space-based or airborne stations H04B7/185
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

Methods and systems are provided for increasing bandwidth efficiency in satellite communications. In some embodiments, a satellite communications method is provided that comprises receiving, at a satellite and from a plurality of user ground terminals, a plurality of source signals, wherein each of the source signals are modulated according to at least one source modulation method, and further receiving, at a satellite and from a plurality of user ground terminals, a plurality of information signals corresponding to the plurality of source signals. The method further includes combining, at the satellite, the plurality of source signals into a combined source signal with an overlapping bandwidth, wherein each of the source signals are further modulated according to at least one predetermined modulation method before they are combined, and transmitting, by a downlink transmission from the satellite to a gateway ground station, the combined source signal.

Claims

1. A method for providing bandwidth efficiency in a satellite communication system, comprising:

receiving, at a gateway ground station, a combined signal from a satellite, the combined signal including a plurality of source signals with overlapping bandwidths;

receiving, at the gateway ground station, a combined information signal from the satellite;

extracting, from the combined information signal, information specifying at least one predetermined modulation method;

generating, based on the at least one predetermined modulation method, a plurality of estimated waveforms corresponding to the plurality of source signals; and

separating, by signal cancellation, the plurality of source signals from the combined signal based on the plurality of estimated waveforms.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising routing, via a terrestrial network, the plurality of source signals from the gateway ground station to one or more user ground terminals.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the combined information signal is based on a plurality of information signals corresponding to the plurality of source signals.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the combined information signal comprises:

a modulated parameter specifying the at least one predetermined modulation method; and

one or more of a user ID, a source modulation type, an error correction code type, or a code rate.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the at least one predetermined modulation method comprises at least one of amplitude shift, phase shift, group delay, spectral inversion, or pseudo-noise coding.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising at least one of filtering or demodulating the plurality of source signals.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the plurality of estimated waveforms comprises a complex cancellation process.

8. A system for providing bandwidth efficiency in satellite communications, the system comprising:

one or more digital signal processors at a gateway ground station, the one or more digital signal processors being configured to;

receive, from a satellite, a combined signal including a plurality of source signals with overlapping bandwidths;

receive, from the satellite, a combined information signal;

extract, from the combined information signal, information specifying at least one predetermined modulation method;

generate, based on the at least one predetermined modulation method, a plurality of estimated waveforms corresponding to the plurality of source signals; and

separate, by signal cancellation, the plurality of source signals from the combined source signal based on the plurality of estimated waveforms.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more digital signal processors are further configured to perform operations comprising routing, via a terrestrial network, the plurality of source signals from the gateway ground station to one or more user ground terminals.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the combined information signal is based on a plurality of information signals corresponding to the plurality of source signals.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the combined information signal comprises:

a modulated parameter specifying the at least one predetermined modulation method; and

one or more of a user ID, a source modulation type, an error correction code type, or a code rate.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the at least one predetermined modulation method comprises at least one of amplitude shift, phase shift, group delay, spectral inversion, or pseudo-noise coding.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more digital signal processors are further configured to perform operations comprising at least one of filtering or demodulating the plurality of source signals.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more digital signal processors are configured to generate the plurality of estimated waveforms based on a complex cancellation process.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable by one or more hardware processors to carry out operations comprising:

receiving, at gateway ground station, a combined signal from a satellite, the combined signal including on a plurality of source signals with overlapping bandwidths;

receiving, at gateway ground station, a combined information signal from the satellite;

extracting, from the combined information signal, information specifying at least one predetermined modulation method;

generating, based on the at least one predetermined modulation method, a plurality of estimated waveforms corresponding to the plurality of source signals; and

separating, by signal cancellation, the plurality of source signals based on the combined source signal and the plurality of estimated waveforms.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured to perform operations comprising routing, via a terrestrial network, the plurality of source signals to one or more user ground terminals.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the combined information signal is based on a plurality of information signals corresponding to the plurality of source signals.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the combined information signal comprises:

a modulated parameter specifying the at least one predetermined modulation method, the at least one predetermined modulation method comprising at least one of amplitude shift, phase shift, group delay, spectral inversion, or pseudo-noise coding; and

one or more of a user ID, a source modulation type, an error correction code type, or a code rate.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured to perform operations comprising at least one of filtering or demodulating the plurality of source signals.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more hardware processors are configured to generate the estimated waveforms based on a complex cancellation process.