Architectures for next generation high throughput satellite systems

This paper introduces architectures for next-generation high throughput satellite (HTS) systems comprising various satellite payload options, ground terminal advances, and scalable system-level software control and management techniques. It describes a model to estimate aggregate system capacity as a function of radio band, available spectrum, spot beams, waveforms, and payload capability, including antenna size, power, and digital/analog connectivity across various links and availability objectives. This system model has been used to evaluate aggregate capacity of representative Ka-Band low earth orbit and geosynchronous orbit systems. A system implementation approach is described for next-generation HTS systems based on widely used Industry standards. Modulation and coding techniques are based on Digital Video Broadcasting - S2 extensions (DVB-S2X), which comprises spectrally efficient modulation schemes combined with low-rate codes. Several implementation technologies are analyzed related to configurable onboard payload and ground-based, software-defined resource control and management, key enablers of next-generation HTS systems. Basic architectural building blocks are introduced for design of end-to-end systems across low earth orbit, medium earth orbit, and geosynchronous orbit satellite constellations, with and without onboard processing and inter-satellite links, and including several efficient scenarios to achieve lossless handovers. Copyright (c) 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.