GPS Satellite Signal

GPS Receiver Block Diagram

LOW EARTH ORBIT
AND
NON-GEO-STATIONARY SATELLITE SYSTEMS
Orbits of Satellites

Equatorial
Inclined
Polar
Categories of Satellites
Categories of Satellites
Frequency bands for Satellite Communication
LOW-EARTH ORBIT (LEO)
LEO systems fly about 1,000 kilometers above the
Earth (between 400 miles and 1,600 miles)
A typical LEO satellite takes less than two hours to
orbit the Earth, which means that a single satellite
is "in view" of ground equipment for a only a few
minutes.
As a consequence, if a transmission takes more
than the few minutes that any one satellite is in
view, a LEO system must "hand off" between
satellites in order to complete the transmission.
In general, this can be accomplished by constantly
relaying signals between the satellite and various
ground stations, or by communicating between the
satellites themselves using "inter-satellite links."
Types of LEOs
There are two types of LEO systems
Big LEOs
Little LEOs
Little LEO satellites

Very small
Use very little bandwidth for communications.
Operates under 1 GHz
Their size and bandwidth usage limits the amount of traffic
the system can carry at any given time.
Little LEO systems support services that require short
messaging and occasional low-bandwidth data transport, such
as paging, fleet tracking and remote monitoring of stationary
monitors

Big LEO systems are designed to carry voice traffic as
well as data.

Operates in the range from 1 GHz to 3 GHz.

They are the technology behind "satellite phones" or
"global mobile personal communications system"
(GMPCS) services now being developed and launched.

Examples of Big LEO systems include Iridium, Globalstar
and the regional Constellation and ECO-8 systems.
Big LEO satellites
LEO Advantages
The transmission delay associated with LEO systems is the
lowest of all of the systems.
In addition, because the signals to and from the satellites
need to travel a relatively short distance, LEOs can operate
with much smaller user equipment (e.g., antennae) than can
systems using a higher orbit.
LEO systems are expected to cost less to implement than the
other satellite systems.
In addition, a system of LEO satellites is designed to maximize
the ability of ground equipment to "see" a satellite at any
time, which can overcome the difficulties caused by
obstructions such as trees and buildings.
LEO Disadvantages
The small coverage area of a LEO satellite means that a LEO
system must coordinate the flight paths and communications
hand-offs a large number of satellites at once, making the
LEOs dependent on highly complex and sophisticated control
and switching systems.
LEO satellites have a shorter life span than other systems
mentioned here.
There are two reasons for this:
first, the lower LEO orbit is more subject to the
gravitational pull of the Earth
and second, the frequent transmission rates necessary
in LEO systems mean that LEO satellites generally have a
shorter battery life than others.
MEDIUM-EARTH ORBIT (MEO)
MEO systems operate at about 10,000 kilometers
(between 1,500 and 6,500 miles) above the Earth,
which is lower than the GEO orbit and higher than
most LEO orbits.
The MEO orbit is a compromise between the LEO
and GEO orbits.
Compared to LEOs, the more distant orbit requires
fewer satellites to provide coverage than LEOs
because each satellite may be in view of any
particular location for several hours.
Compared to GEOs, MEOs can operate effectively
with smaller, mobile equipment and with less
latency
Typically, MEO constellations have 10 to 17 satellites
distributed over two or three orbital planes.
Most planned MEO systems will offer phone services
similar to the Big LEOs.
In fact, before the MEO designation came into wide use,
MEO systems were considered Big LEOs.
Examples of MEO systems include GPS, ICO Global
Communications
MEDIUM-EARTH ORBIT (MEO)
MEO Advantages
MEO systems will require far fewer satellites than LEOs,
reducing overall system complexity and cost, while still
requiring fewer technological fixes to eliminate signal delay
than GEOs.
MEO systems larger capacity relative to LEOs may enable
them to be more flexible in meeting shifting market demand
for either voice or data services.
MEO Disadvantages
MEO satellites, like LEOs, have a much shorter life expectancy
than GEOs, requiring more frequent launches to maintain the
system over time.
MEO systems, as well as some Big LEOs, targeted at the voice
communications market may have a disadvantage when
compared with cellular and other terrestrial wireless
networks.
A satellite signal is inherently weaker and is more subject to
interference than those of terrestrial systems, thus requiring a
larger antenna than a traditional mobile phone.
Delay and Throughput considerations
Delay considerations
LEO
The time delay for a signal passing between LEO user1 and LEO user2 in
the same instantaneous coverage is 5.4 ms (2.7 ms up and 2.7 ms down)
and go and return delay between two users is twice this at 10.8 ms
MEO
The time delay for a signal passing between MEO user1 and MEO user2 in
the same instantaneous coverage is 69 ms (34.5 ms up and 34.5 ms down)
and go and return delay between two users is twice this at 138 ms
GEO
The time delay for a signal passing between GEO user1 and GEO user2 in
the same instantaneous coverage is 238.6 ms (119.3 ms up and 119.3 ms
down)
and go and return delay between two users is twice this at 477.2 ms
System considerations
There are four important factors that influence the
design of any satellite system
1. Incremental Growth
2. Interim Operations
3. Replenishment options
4. End-to-end system implementation
Operational NGSO constellation designs
There are seven satellite constellation designs
1. Ellipso
2. Globalstar
3. New ICO
4. Iridium
5. Orbcomm
6. Skybridge
7. Teledesic