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A whole new generation of satellites, including Inmarsat-5 and Intelsat\u2019s Epic (NG) constellations, are embracing flexible payloads that give operators the ability to dynamically move power and even frequency bands to better serve customer needs.<\/p>\n
Clearly, there is a need for agile payloads. With global IP traffic expected to grow at more than 20 percent annually in the next few years, the amount of information the world will want to transport globally will double in the next five years. All this change makes it extremely difficult to predict what services will be needed where.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou end up having a geography of demand that is extremely dynamic over time whether in quantity or in nature of services,\u201d observes Thierry Guillemin, senior VP and chief technical officer of Intelsat. \u201cBecause demand is changing so fast and the way it\u2019s spreading over regions, operators will expect to have in the future the flexibility to change most payload characteristics in orbit as business needs require.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many industry watchers believe flexible payloads will enable satellite operators to match terrestrial providers, the amount of capacity they can offer customers.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom an operational point of view, flexible payloads move the satellite market much closer to the way general telecom markets are provisioned,\u201d says Jay Gullish, director of Space & Telecommunications for Futron Corp.<\/p>\n
He sees flexibility as the wave of the future for a growing segment of operators of high-throughput satellites. With a flexible payload on board, operators can respond to changes in demand as they occur, rather than having to pinpoint where they expect demand to be a decade or more in the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a big deal because you don\u2019t have to pre-set your supply-demand requirements or lock in your supply-demand assumptions early,\u201d Gullish says. <\/p>\n
The two most common ways to achieve flexibility are one, using a bent-pipe architecture to direct satellites to provide a specific service to a specific area of the globe, and two, to re-point antennas on the spacecraft using steerable spot beams. For the past decade or more, operators such as Intelsat and Inmarsat have been able to re-point the coverage to regions as satellite missions have evolved.<\/p>\n
According to Hampton Chan, VP and chief architect of Space Systems\/Loral (SS\/L), customers are driving for more flexible payloads \u201cto give them the maximum opportunity to utilize satellite capability throughout their satellite\u2019s lifetime.\u201d<\/p>\n
This push requires operators to balance the degree of flexibility customers seek with the costs of attaining it.<\/p>\n
Providing a flexible system for customers, whose businesses are also changing very fast, was a central requirement driving the design of Intelsat\u2019s Epic (NG) spacecraft. With its C-, Ku- and Ka-band capabilities, EpicNG was built on an open space architecture that can support both star configuration and mesh-configured networks. The former is common in all high-throughput systems, while the mesh topology is unique because it allows users to connect spot beams to spot beams. EpicNG uses wide beams, spot beams and frequency reuse technology to provide a complementary overlay to the operator\u2019s fixed satellite network, including Intelsat\u2019s existing satellite fleet. \u201cThat means that a customer can continue to use their existing infrastructure,\u201d says Guillemin. <\/p>\n
Flexibility in payload design is nothing new for Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems, which is building Intelsat\u2019s Epic (NG) payload as well as flexible satellite systems for Thuraya, SkyTerra and Spaceway. The global satellite builder has applied significant innovation from its experience designing DoD\u2019s WGS system.<\/p>\n
\u201cWGS is really the prototype for a lot of these flexible satellites,\u201d notes Jim Simpson, VP, business development for Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems.<\/p>\n
As the Pentagon\u2019s high capacity, next-generation satellite constellation, WGS can switch between X- and Ka-band frequencies. An X-band phased array allows users to shape beams to best fit their needs, while steerable Ka-band spot beams give government the ability to move coverage areas to the appropriate spot for warfighters. WGS uses an active phased array.<\/p>\n
Simpson believes the initial \u201csweet spot\u201d for flexible payloads is the communications arena for government programs of record that need a surge capability.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the first emergence of flexible payloads will be in the communications area and right behind it, in the sensor area for applications such as earth observation, crop development, oil, weather and mapping applications.\u201d<\/p>\n
He adds that increasingly both government and commercial customers want the ability to tailor their frequencies to the appropriate market demand.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe major satellite service providers are all starting to recognize the potential to open up new market areas by being able to look at different frequencies,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n
Operators agree that flexible payloads are most attractive in four major segments: mobility; network services for backhaul in emerging markets; satellite broadcast TV and other media services; and the government sector.<\/p>\n
Many customers want to leverage a payload to enter emerging markets because the satellite capacity can quickly be redeployed elsewhere as market needs change.<\/p>\n
The European satellite operator Avanti is currently using a highly innovative flexible payload on its Hylas-1 satellite contracted to Astrium and launched at the end of 2010. This satellite is primarily dedicated to bringing high-speed broadband services to remote rural areas across Europe. Its \u201chighly adaptable\u201d payload was designed to allocate varying amounts of power and bandwidth to the different regions within its footprint, reacting to the highs and lows of traffic demand.<\/p>\n
VSAT network operators in emerging markets are an important target customer for Intelsat\u2019s EpicNG satellite. That\u2019s because VSAT services use backhaul \u2013 where mesh connectivity is extremely important. \u201cThese customers have their own gateways and don\u2019t want to give up the control they have over their network topology and their network applications,\u201d says Guillemin.<\/p>\n
For MSS providers like Inmarsat, having an agile, flexible spectrum management and power reallocation capability on board remains critical to their ability to serve customers.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have had to cope with varying levels of traffic across the globe, we\u2019ve always had to have the flexibility to move power and bandwidth around,\u201d says Marcus Vilaca, chief scientist for Inmarsat.<\/p>\n
Inmarsat-4 is notably one of the most flexible constellations in orbit today. The first two Inmarsat-4s launched seven years ago, and feature digital processors that enable the operator to channelize its spectrum to more than 190 beams covering the globe and provide up to 25 channels per spot beam.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur systems cover the whole globe but our traffic varies immensely according to where you are on the globe,\u201d Vilaca says.<\/p>\n
Because L-band spectrum is scarce, Inmarsat needed a way to optimize the use of the frequency. This was accomplished with transparent digital processors, \u201cwhich enable you to connect any point to any other point with a fine degree of granularity and a wide degree of re-configurability,\u201d notes Laurent Thomasson, head of Telecom Marketing and R&D for Astrium\u2019s satellite business, which was the lead contractor for Inmarsat-4. <\/p>\n
Some global operators are taking a more cautious approach to flexible payloads in their fleets. Martin Halliwell, CTO, SES, says that when it comes to flexible payloads, he\u2019s most interested in knowing two things: how late can he introduce changes when the satellite is being constructed, and once it\u2019s in orbit, can he configure that satellite to do precisely what he wants it to do?<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s where we\u2019d like to be. To carry that kind of flexibility and that kind of processing today is extremely expensive. It\u2019s heavy; it needs a lot of power; and it has a lot of complexity. And with that complexity, there is often an associated reduction in reliability.\u201d<\/p>\n
For now, Halliwell says his fleet investments in the near term will remain committed to current satellite payloads that are \u201crelatively simple and reliable\u201d and will take a more \u201cevolutionary\u201d approach to embracing flexible payloads.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re still several years away before we start looking towards a true, full flexibility in our payloads,\u201d says Halliwell, who adds he would like to see more flexibility on the telemetry and control side first. Today, when SES moves a satellite from one orbital position to another, coordination of the telemetry frequencies becomes challenging due to the fact that the telemetry system operates on fixed frequencies.<\/p>\n
Simpson agrees that there is definitely cost associated with creating this type of flexible space-based capability. Especially since the payload has to fit on a planned satellite, last 15 years in orbit and accommodate the harshness of a space environment.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of that costs money, and the key is: does the business case warrant the additional cost associated with these payloads that enable processing? What we are finding is that the business cases are compelling and you are able to extract more gold out of the mine by utilizing these capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Simpson notes that affordability is getting better since the burden of the non-recurring investment doesn\u2019t fall exclusively on either the commercial or government segment.<\/p>\n
SS\/L, which provides close to half the Intelsat in-orbit fleet and a large number of Direct Broadcast satellites in the United States, has successfully implemented highly cost-effective versions of payload flexibility by working with customers to pre-define a finite number of possible coverage patterns, rather than having \u201cinfinitely flexible coverage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMany customers are very receptive to having a few coverage options,\u201d says Chan, because the cost savings are dramatic on the order of \u201cone-tenth the cost\u201d of offering an infinite number of antenna patterns from an active phased array.<\/p>\n
Relying on ground-based technology for greater satellite flexibility is another strategy that SS\/L has employed successfully. SS\/L\u2019s patented Ground Based Beam Forming (GBBF) enables MSS satellites to be reconfigured to provide disaster recovery services. Spot beams can be added, removed or reconfigured to enable a satellite to operate from different orbital locations and to adapt to changes in traffic patterns. With beam forming performed on the ground, the cost and time to deliver a highly flexible satellite are significantly reduced. The benefits of GBBF were demonstrated when S-band satellite ICO G1 was reconfigured to provide emergency communications services to Haiti after the earthquake, and when TerreStar-1 was reconfigured to expand service over the Eastern coast of the United States after Hurricane Irene threatened.<\/p>\n
Guillemin believes the holy grail of flexibility would be generic platforms that can be customized and configured to current market needs. He contends this would solve the cost equation and actually make it cheaper to go fully flexible solutions because one, it eliminates a lengthy, costly engineering process on every program, and two, a generic payload design opens up the possibility for satellite manufacturers to produce their satellites in batches independent of orders from operators. An inventory of satellites would be available on short notice, meaning operators would realize much faster return on investment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are the conversations we have with manufacturers. A number of building blocks exist. What you really need is to pull them all together and get to a system design that is compelling for a broad base of customers.\u201d <\/p>\n
Most agree that flexible payloads are the future for certain segments of the satellite market. Chan hopes that as operators think to increase the percentage of their satellite procurements with payload flexibility in mind, they consider having a dialogue earlier with manufacturers to explore ways to jointly define flexibility requirements so that manufacturers can develop and insert the proper features into the satellite design.<\/p>\n
Thomasson sees the benefit of the new flexible technologies as a way to better integrate satellite nodes within the global telecommunications networks in the short and medium-term future.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe point is for the network operator to find the best combination of all this infrastructure to maximize penetration,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
To be competitive in this evolving environment, the satellite industry needs to adapt and perhaps rethink its mission to offer the \u201cright connectivity and right amount of capacity from one source to another. You have to adapt over time.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Surges in throughput along with changing business needs in an environment of scarce spectrum are driving the move toward what many consider the holy grail of satellite design \u2014 flexible payloads. A whole new generation of satellites, including Inmarsat-5 and Intelsat\u2019s Epic (NG) constellations, are embracing flexible payloads that give operators the ability to dynamically […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-81770","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81770"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81770"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81770\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}