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DOI: 10.1036/0071346481.25
Document3 12/5/01 1:56 PM Page 2
Contents
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25
CHAPTER
Low Earth
Orbit Satellites
(LEOs)
Copyright 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies. Click Here for Terms of Use.
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414 Chapter 25
Introduction
Quite a bit of discussion regarding wireless communications has already
been covered in earlier chapters. However, a combination of two separate
services and technologies are merging as new services for broadband com-
munications. These two services include long haul communications and the
use of personal communications services. The technologies include the use
of satellite and the cellular concepts combined. Worldwide communications
services can be achieved by these two combined services, therefore some
diligent effort should be made to understand just what is happening in this
arena. This truly brings home the concept of communications from any-
where to anywhere. The thought of being out in the middle of a lake and
receiving a call, or rafting down a river and making a call, boggles the mind.
This is especially true when thinking about some of the more rural areas in
the world where no telephone service infrastructure exists today. Yet, in a
matter of a few years these remote locations, on mountaintops, in forests, in
valleys, or on the sea will all be reachable within a moment’s notice. The
infrastructure of a wired world will not easily lend itself to this need, due to
timing and cost issues. Therefore, the use of a wireless transmission system
is the obvious answer.
However, the use of cellular and personal communications devices still
leaves a lot to be desired. First, the deployment of these services is always
going to be in the major metropolitan areas, where the use and financial
payback will be achieved. Thus, in the remote areas it will be decades, if not
longer, until the deployment ever works its way close to the remote areas.
Enter the ability to see the world from above the skyline! The industry
decided to attempt servicing remote areas from a satellite capacity. This is
not a new concept; the use of satellite transmission systems has been
around for over thirty years. However, the application for an on-demand,
dial-up satellite service is new. This will have to be a lucrative business ven-
ture, because the costs are still quite high. Look at the Iridium project that
took over five years to build and launch, only to meet with lax reception
from the marketplace. This drove Iridium Inc., into bankruptcy in its first
year of operation.
There are still approximately one dozen suppliers competing for space
segment and frequency allocation to offer voice, broadband data, paging,
and determination services. In each case, the organizations have selected
various approaches on how to launch their service offerings and the use of
orbital capabilities to provide the service. In general, this discussion will
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Low-Earth Orbit
In December 1990, Motorola, filed an application with the FCC for the pur-
poses of constructing, launching, and operating a low earth orbit, global
mobile satellite system known as Iridium. This was the hot button that
sparked the world into a frenzy. Iridium was a concept of launching a series
416 Chapter 25
1
Originally the Iridium proposal was for 77 satellites, but Motorola amended this number after
the World Administrative Radio Council meeting in the spring of 1992.
2
The original concept was to use seven polar orbits with eleven satellites in each. This would pro-
vide worldwide coverage, much similar to an orange slice concept.
25.64347_CH25x 12/5/01 1:58 PM Page 417
Summary of cell Sites are fixed Sites are the moving targets
sites vs. Iridium
Cells Users move from site to site User stays put, sites move the user from
satellite to satellite
Areas of coverage are 3—5 miles across Areas of coverage are 185—1100± miles across
Table 25-4 Radio Determination Services (RDSS) Will allow for the location of vehicle fleets,
aircraft, marine vehicles, etc. RDSS will also
A summary of be an integral locator service for all voice
the initial features communications devices.
available on LEO
Voice Communications (VC) Will allow on demand, dial-up digital voice
Networks communications from anywhere in the world.
418 Chapter 25
Figure 25-1
The LEO concept
420 N
miles
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Figure 25-2
Ground station
telemetry and control
Figure 25-3
Satellite to satellite
communications is
handled on a Ka
band.
420 Chapter 25
So What Happened?
With the market ripe for a global communications system, and the lead in
getting the service up and running, how did Iridium fail? One can only spec-
ulate, but the cost of launching Iridium was over $5 billion (US) and the
project was nearly a year late. Moreover, during launch, several factors
plagued Iridium (lost satellites, explosions, and failed launches), putting
significant financial strain on the operating budget. When Iridium became
available, the initial costs were touted as being $5—7 (US) per minute for an
international call. In 1992 when the model was created, this price may have
been realistic. However, in the time it took to get off the ground, the costs for
dial-up voice communications plummeted. No one was willing to pay the
prices asked by Iridium. A better price may have been one I predicted in
1995 stating that they will have to charge from $1—3 (US) per minute. That
may have been one of the total downfalls for the Iridium network. Moreover,
the handset price was too high, ranging upwards of $3,000 each. This does
not mean that they cannot come back and reestablish themselves as the
leader in the LEO industry, but there are many providers right on their
heels (such as GlobalStar and Teledesic). These companies and their net-
works are aggressively chasing behind Iridium and plan to offer the broad-
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422 Chapter 25
424 Chapter 25
Figure 25-4
The spot beam
pattern from Iridium
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Figure 25-5
The overall system
through the
gateways
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426 Chapter 25
Figure 25-7 C D
A seven-cell
frequency reuse
B A E C D
pattern
G F B A E
C D G F
B A E C D
G F B A E
C D G F
B A E
G F
428 Chapter 25
LORAL-QUALCOMM
Loral-Qualcomm’s (located in Palo Alto, California) approach is to use
approximately 48 satellites in a big LEO arrangement similar to Iridium,
but with less craft. Their network handle is Globalstar systems. Qualcomm
expects to use its expertise in the specialized mobile radio business and a
Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) arrangement that they pioneered.
This service is currently two years behind schedule, but in the process of
launch with expected availability in 2000. Loral-Qualcomm will draw from
its experience in the business by deploying their CDMA technology and
attempt to reuse the frequency spectrum as much as possible. Many of the
initial service offerings from this company will include fleet tracking, loca-
tor services, and ultimately the extension of voice and data communica-
tions. The uniqueness of the Loral-Qualcomm services is that the system is
designed to fully complement the cellular and PCS industries by providing
single service coverage from a single telephone to a single number, through
an intelligent network. Loral-Qualcomm did not plan to use a dual mode
operating set, but a single set that can interface to any network service
without having the user make a decision. Globalstar systems constellation
is shown in Figure 25-8. These folks stand to be a big contender in the LEO
business.
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430 Chapter 25
Figure 25-8
Globalstar systems
constellation