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  • Advanced Antennae for Flexible and Cost Effective Broadcasting Satellites

    Paper number

    IAC-06-B3.3.08

    Author

    Mr. Jean-Didier Gayrard, Thales Alenia Space, France

    Year

    2006

    Abstract
    Demand for broadcasting services is likely to increase in the next years because of the emergence and growth of new services: Internet access, content delivery services and mostly HD-TV broadcasting. However satellite operators are also expressing a strong interest for flexible satellites, providing that satellites are cost effective. Flexible satellites allow fleet rationalization, optimization of back-up policy, and early entry in new or local markets. Flexibility in the coverage definition and power allocation appears as the best solution to follow the market evolutions and revolutions.
    Another concern of satellite operators is the cost effectiveness of the repeaters. Although, the craft of broadcasters was traditionally to broadly cast TV or radio programs to the largest audience, with the highest possible power, today trends go toward a geographic segmentation of the market. In this context, antennas, which are providing linguistic coverage, prevent broadcasting all over Europe by focusing power at the targeted audience.
    At antenna level, several technologies can answer to these requirements. Passive antenna technologies are able to provide some flexibility. However, active antennas appear to be the ideal tool to create multi-beam linguistic coverage, to introduce flexibility in beam pointing and shaping, to cope with changes of the orbital position of the satellite by adapting the coverage’s shape, and finally to allocate dynamically the available radio power to beams.
    This paper reviews antenna active and passive technologies and the associated levels of flexibility. It then focuses on the description of an active antenna working in the Ka-band that is able to provide both HD-TV broadcasting and multimedia multicasting. These last technologies allow a complete flexibility and should be available for development after 2015.
    
    Abstract document

    IAC-06-B3.3.08.pdf

    Manuscript document

    IAC-06-B3.3.08.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

    To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.