Wireless communication using an airborne switching node
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A system for providing communication to a plurality of devices located in a service region on earth which includes a plurality of cells, comprising an aircraft flying above the service region said aircraft having an airborne switching node which includes an antenna section, said airborne switching node being operable to:
- transmit through said antenna section to the service region a plurality of directional beams in respective different directions so that each beam is associated with a respective cell in the service region;
adjust the directions of the beams relative to said aircraft, including compensation for movement of said aircraft relative to the earth; and
receive through said antenna section respective signals transmitted by the plurality of devices located in the service region, and transmit each such received signal on one of the beams to one of the devices other than the device from which that signal was received.
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Abstract
A communication system includes an aircraft supporting an airborne switching node that provides communication services to a variety of ground-based devices located in the service region. The devices include subscriber devices, such as customer premises equipment and business premises equipment, as well as gateway devices.
249 Citations
48 Claims
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1. A system for providing communication to a plurality of devices located in a service region on earth which includes a plurality of cells, comprising an aircraft flying above the service region said aircraft having an airborne switching node which includes an antenna section, said airborne switching node being operable to:
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transmit through said antenna section to the service region a plurality of directional beams in respective different directions so that each beam is associated with a respective cell in the service region; adjust the directions of the beams relative to said aircraft, including compensation for movement of said aircraft relative to the earth; and receive through said antenna section respective signals transmitted by the plurality of devices located in the service region, and transmit each such received signal on one of the beams to one of the devices other than the device from which that signal was received. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A system for providing communication to a plurality of devices located in a service region on earth, comprising an aircraft flying above the service region, said aircraft having an airborne switching node which includes an antenna section, said airborne switching node being operable to:
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transmit through said antenna section to the service region a plurality of directional beams in respective different directions; hand off each of the devices in the service region from beam to beam as needed to compensate for movement of said aircraft relative to the earth; and receive through said antenna section respective signals transmitted by the plurality of devices located in the service region, and transmit each such received signal on one of the beams to one of the devices other than the device from which that signal was received. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A method for providing communication to a plurality of devices located in a service region which is on earth and which includes a plurality of cells, comprising the steps of:
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flying an aircraft above the service region, said aircraft having an airborne switching node that includes an antenna section; transmitting through said antenna section a plurality of directional beams in respective different directions to the service region, so that each beam is associated with a respective cell in the service region; adjusting the directions of the beams relative to said aircraft, including compensation for movement of said aircraft relative to the earth; and receiving through said antenna section respective signals transmitted by the plurality of devices located in the service region, and transmitting each such received signal on one of the beams to one of the devices other than the device from which that signal was received. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. A method for providing communication to a plurality of devices located in a service region on earth, comprising the steps of:
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flying an aircraft above the service region, said aircraft having an airborne switching node which includes an antenna section; transmitting through said antenna section to the service region a plurality of directional beams in respective different directions; handing off each of the devices in the service region from beam to beam as needed to compensate for movement of said aircraft relative to the earth; and receiving through said antenna section respective signals transmitted by the plurality of devices located in the service region, and transmitting each such received signal on one of the beams to one of the devices other than the device from which that signal was received. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
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Specification