Communication Services via Satellite

Communication Services via Satellite: A Handbook for Design, Installation, and Service Engineers, Second Edition focuses on the innovations made by satellites in the field of communications.

The publication first elaborates on basic concepts, noise and interference, and electromagnetic waves, propagation, and antennas. Discussions focus on frequency-selective surfaces and planar antennas, reflection, refraction, depolarization, and feeds, primary properties of antennas, energy in free space, comparison of noise factor and temperature, and system constraints imposed by transponder characteristics. The text then examines microwave circuit elements, digital signal processing, and digital and digital/analogue communications systems. Concerns include bandwidth compression video codec, satellite weather and environmental services, quadrature mirror filters and sub-band coding, baseband code formats, coupling to cavities and waveguides, and circulators and isolators. The manuscript takes a look at installation and servicing, information security and conditional access, television and radio audio channels, television receivers and distribution systems, and television systems.

The publication is a dependable source of information for communication experts and researchers interested in the use of satellites in communications.

Preface to the Second Edition

Preface to the First Edition

Acknowledgements

1 The Basic Concepts

1.1 Advantages of Satellite Communications

1.2 Orbits in Use

1.3 Frequencies Used

1.4 Maximising the Availability of the Frequency Spectrum

1.5 System Constraints Imposed by Transponder Characteristics

1.6 Characteristics of Modulation Systems

1.7 Companding

1.8 Energy Dispersal

1.9 Digital Modulation Systems

1.10 Up and Down-Link Frequencies

2 Noise and Interference

2.1 Noise Sources

2.2 System Noise Factor

2.3 Equivalent Noise Temperature

2.4 Comparison of Noise Factor and Noise Temperature

2.5 Atmospheric Effects

2.6 Interference with Analogue Signals

2.7 Signal to Noise Ratios

2.8 Interference with Digital Channels

3 Electromagnetic Waves, Propagation and Antennas

3.1 Energy in Free Space

3.2 Polarisation and the Two Components of the E Field

3.3 Primary Properties of Antennas

3.4 Secondary Antenna Properties

3.5 Choice of Antenna Type

3.6 Helical Antennas

3.7 Reflection, Refraction, Depolarisation and Feeds

3.8 Frequency Selective Surfaces and Planar Antennas

3.9 Fresnel Zone Plate Antennas

3.10 Signal Strength Contour Maps or Footprints

3.11 Antenna Pointing and Mounting

4 Microwave Circuit Elements

4.1 Transmission Lines

4.2 Waveguides

4.3 Resonant Cavities

4.4 Coupling to Cavities and Waveguides

4.5 Circulators and Isolators

4.6 Dielectric Resonators

4.7 Microwave Circuit Substrates and Transmission Lines

4.8 Some Microwave Circuit Elements

4.9 Active Devices

5 Digital Signal Processing

5.1 Analogue and Digital Signalling Compared

5.2 Sampling and Quantisation

5.3 Non-Linear Quantisation

5.4 Quantising ac Signals

5.5 Pulse Spectra

5.6 Baseband Code Formats

5.7 Data Error Control

5.8 Pseudo Random Binary Sequences

5.9 Bit Rate Reduction/Bandwidth Conservation

5.10 Quadrature Mirror Filters and Sub-Band Coding

5.11 Transform Coding

6 Digital and Digital/Analogue Communications Systems

6.1 Systems Overview

6.2 Facsimile System

6.3 Satellite Weather and Environmental Services

6.4 Mobile Systems

6.5 Satellite Navigation Systems

6.6 Satellite News Gathering (SNG)

6.7 Videoconferencing

6.8 Bandwidth Compression Video Codec

6.9 Small System Satellite Services (S4)

6.10 Global Business Services

7 Television Systems

7.1 Review of Current Systems

7.2 Improved Processing of Current Systems

7.3 Digit 2000 System

7.4 Multiplexed Analogue Components Systems

7.5 High Definition Television Developments

8 Television Receivers and Distribution Systems

8.1 Outdoor Electronics Unit

8.2 TV Receivers SAT-TEL Models PRK-2 and PRK-2000

8.3 Frequency Synthesis Tuning

8.4 TV Receivers DRAKE Series II Models (1024, 1224 and 1424)

8.5 Threshold Extension Demodulators

8.6 Television Distribution Techniques

8.7 An Alternative to Cable Delivery

9 Television and Radio Audio Channels

9.1 Towards Stereo TV

9.2 The Learning System

9.3 Broadcast Television System Committee/Multichannel Television Sound System

9.4 Japanese FM-FM System

9.5 Multi-Carrier Channel Operation

9.6 Wegener 1600 Stereo System

9.7 Warner Amex System

9.8 West German Dual Channel Stereo System

9.9 Gorizont Sound Channels

9.10 Dolby Adaptive Delta Modulation Digital Audio System

9.11 C-MAC (Packet) Sound Channels

9.12 D-MAC/D2-MAC Sound Channels

9.13 Vertical Interval Multiple Channel Audio System (VIM-CAS)

9.14 Near Instantaneous Companded Audio Multiplex (NICAM-728)

9.15 Wegener SDM 2000 Digital Audio Transmission System

9.16 Sound Radio Broadcasting Via Satellite

10 Information Security and Conditional Access

10.1 General Introduction

10.2 Spread Spectrum Techniques

10.3 Scrambling and Encryption

10.4 Conditional Access and Television Services

10.5 Controlled Access in Operation

11 Installation and Servicing

11.1 Initial Survey

11.2 Mechanical Considerations

11.3 Antenna/LNB Combination

11.4 Alignment of the Antenna Assembly

11.5 Surface Mounted Devices

11.6 Control of Static in the Servicing Environment

11.7 Servicing the LNB

11.8 Servicing the Main Receivers

Appendix 1

A1.1 Geostationary Orbits

A1.2 Elliptical Orbits

A1.3 FM/AM Noise Advantages

A1.4 De-Emphasis

A1.5 Signals in the Presence of Noise

Appendix 2

A2.1 Noise Performance of Cascaded Stages

Appendix 3

A3.1 The Universal Antenna Constant

A3.2 Approximate Beamwidth for Parabolic Reflector Antennas

A3.3 Azimuth/Elevation Angles by Calculator

A3.4 Calculation of Angle of Elevation a for Simple Polar Mounts

A3.5 Modified Polar Mount

Appendix 4

A4.1 Quantisation Noise

Appendix 5

A5.1 Microwave Frequency Bands Classification

Index