Apparatus and method for remote beam forming for satellite broadcasting systems
US8098612B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 16, 2008 |
| Grant date | Jan 17, 2012 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 24, 2030 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04W16/14
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A satellite broadcasting system is achieved in which remote beam forming processors located among distributed ground stations are used to control downlink beam footprints and pointing directions. Digital beam forming techniques allow a single satellite downlink broadcast antenna array to generate multiple simultaneous downlinks that can be pointed independently and that may contain distinct information content. By allocating some of the uplink back-channel elements as null channels, continuous calibration of the uplink channel can be performed, improving the performance of the downlink broadcast array and the quality of the broadcast for users. By wavefront multiplexing, all of the uplink channel elements propagate through the all of the available propagation channels simultaneously, eliminating the need for complex and costly individual array-element calibration equipment using on-board or ground-based references.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.