VSAT

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Sebuah antena penerima satelit 2,5m untuk akses internet melalui satelit dua arah.

VSAT adalah singkatan dari Very Small Aperture Terminal adalah stasiun penerima sinyal dari
satelit dengan antena penerima berbentuk piringan dengan diameter kurang dari tiga meter.
Fungsi utama dari VSAT adalah untuk menerima dan mengirim data ke satelit. Satelit berfungsi
sebagai penerus sinyal untuk dikirimkan ke titik lainnya di atas bumi. Sebenarnya piringan
VSAT tersebut menghadap ke sebuah satelit geostasioner. Satelit geostasioner berarti satelit
tersebut selalu berada di tempat yang sama sejalan dengan perputaran bumi pada sumbunya.
Satelit geostasioner mengorbit selalu pada titik yang sama di atas permukaan bumi, maka dia
akan selalu berada di atas sana dan mengikuti perputaran bumi pada sumbunya.

Daftar isi
[sembunyikan]

• 1 Mengirim Dan Menerima Data

• 2 Perangkat
• 3 Komponen
• 4 Kedudukan Satelit

• 5 Keunggulan dan kekurangan

[sunting] Mengirim Dan Menerima Data

Mendapatkan data Internet dari setelit sama saja dengan mendapatkan sinyal televisi dari satelit.
Data dikirimkan oleh satelit dan diterima oleh decoder pada sisi pelanggan. Data yang diterima
dan yang hendak dikirimkan melalui VSAT harus di-encode dan di-decode oleh encoder dan
decoder terlebih dahulu. Satelit Telkom-1 menggunakan C-Band (4-6 GHz). Selain C-Band ada
juga Ku-Band. Namun C-Band lebih tahan terhadap cuaca dibandingkan dengan KU-Band.
Satelit ini menggunakan frekuensi yang berbeda antara menerima dan mengirim data. Intinya,
frekuensi yang tinggi digunakan untuk uplink (5,925 sampai 6,425 GHz), frekuensi yang lebih
rendah digunakan untuk downlink (3,7 sampai 4.2 GHz).
Sistem ini mengadopsi teknologi TDM dan TDMA. Umumnya konfigurasi VSAT adalah seperti
bintang. Piringan yang ditengah disebut hub dan melayani banyak piringan lainnya yang
berlokasi di tempat yang jauh. Hub berkomunikasi dengan piringan lainnya menggunakan kanal
TDM dan diterima oleh semua piringan lainnya. Piringan lainnya mengirimkan data ke hub
menggunakan kanal TDMA. Dengan cara ini diharapkan dapat memberikan koneksi yang baik
untuk hubungan data, suara dan fax. Semua lalu lintas data harus melalui hub ini, bahkan jika
suatu piringan lain hendak berhubungan dengan piringan lainnya. Hub ini mengatur semua rute
data pada jaringan VSAT.

Frame TDM selalu berukuran 5.760 byte. Setiap frame memiliki 240 sub-frame. Setiap sub-
frame adalah 24 byte. Panjang waktu frame tergantung pada data rate outbound yang dipilih.
TDMA selalu pada 180 ms. TDMA disinkronisasi untuk memastikan bahwa kiriman data yang
berasal dari stasiun yang berbeda tidak bertabrakan satu dengan yang lainnya.

Pendapat umum mengatakan bahwa koneksi dengan satelit adalah koneksi yang paling cepat.
Kenyataanya adalah tidak. Waktu yang dibutuhkan dari satu titik di atas bumi ke titik lainnya
melalui satelit adalah sekitar 700 milisecond, sementara leased line hanya butuh waktu sekitar
40 milisecond. Hal ini disebabkan oleh jarak yang harus ditempuh oleh data yaitu dari bumi ke
satelit dan kembali ke bumi. Satelit geostasioner sendiri berketinggian sekitar 36.000 kilometer
di atas permukaan bumi.

[sunting] Perangkat
Terminal Antena Sangat Kecil adalah alat di stasiun bumi dan digunakan untuk mengirim serta
menerima pancaran frekwensi daripada satelit. Antena VSAT berukuran lebih kurang 2 hingga
10 kaki (0.55-12 m) dipasang di atap ,dinding atau atas tanah dan pemilihan besar kecilnya
antena sangat tergantung pada jenis frekuensi (misalnya C band atau Ku band) yang akan
digunakan.

[sunting] Komponen
Komponen VSAT, terdiri dari:

• .Unit Luar (Outdoor Unit (ODU)):

1. Antena/dish/parabola ukuran 2 hingga 4 kaki (0.55-2.4 m), yang dipasang pada
atap, dinding atau di tanah.
2. BUC (Block Up Converter), yang menghantarkan sinyal informasi ke satelit.Juga
sering disebut sebagai Transmitter (Tx).
3. LNB (Low Noise Block Up), yang menerima sinyal informasi dari satelit. Juga
sering disebut sebagai Receiver (Rx).

• Unit Dalaman (Indoor Unit (IDU)):

1. Modem (Modulator / Demodulator), sebuah alat dipanggil Return Channel
Satellite Terminal yang menyambungkan dari unit luar dengan IFL kabel
berukuran panjang tidak lebih 50 meter.
2. IFL (Inter Facility Link). Merupakan media penghubung antara ODU & IDU.
Fisiknya biasanya berupa kabel dengan jenis koaksial dan biasanya menggunakan
konektor jenis BNC (Bayonet Neill-Concelman).

• Satelit
1. Merupakan alat di orbit bumi khusus untuk menerima/ menghantar maklumat
secara nirkabel, berkomunikasi melalui frekuensi radio.

menggunakan Satelit Telkom 2 (Indonesia) digunakan untuk Depdagri, dengan teknologi

C band yang lebih tahan dengan cuaca di Indonesia (berhubungan dengan masalah curah
hujan yang cukup tinggi di Indonesia). Menggunakan Komunikasi 2 arah, menerima dan
 menghantar isyarat. Daerah yang dipasang VSAT dikenali sebagai remote terminal,
dikawal oleh hub station. Semua isyarat dari satelit dikirim ke hub terlebih dahulu
sebelum dikirim kembali ke terminal remote lain, yaitu Propinsi / Kabupaten.

• Kapasitas muat turun (download) ialah 1 Mbps tetapi boleh dinaiktaraf

sehinga mencapai 45 Mbps**
• Kapasitas muat naik (upload) pula ialah 128 Kbps tetapi boleh dinaiktaraf
sehinga mencapai 1.1 Mbps**
• Kontrak perjanjian SchoolNet hanya 1 Mbps muatturun dan 128 Kbps
muatnaik

[sunting] Kedudukan Satelit

Jenis-jenis satelit bergantung kepada kedudukannya dengan permukaan bumi.

Ada 4 jenis satelit :

• GEO -Geostationary (geo-synchronous) earth orbit

• MEO -Medium earth orbit
• LEO - Low earth orbit
• HEO -Highly elliptical orbit

[sunting] Keunggulan dan kekurangan

Keunggulan VSAT:

• Pemasangannya cepat.
• Jangkauan terjauh dapat mencapai setengah permukaan bumi.

Kekurangan VSAT:

• Koneksinya rentan terhadap gangguan cuaca (terhadap molekul air).

• Memakan tempat, terutama untuk piringannya.

Ku band
ITU Radio Band Numbers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Jump to: navigation, search ITU Radio Band Symbols

The Ku band (pronounced "kay-yoo") is a portion of VLF LF MF HF VHF UHF SHF EHF
the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range NATO Radio bands
of frequencies. This symbol refers to "K-under" (in the
original German, "Kurz-unten", with the same ABCDEFGHIJKLM
meaning)—in other words, the band directly below the IEEE Radar bands
K-band. In radar applications, it ranges from 12 to
18 GHz according to the formal definition of radar HF VHF UHF L S C X Ku K Ka V W
frequency band nomenclature in IEEE Standard 521-
2002. [1][2] edit

Ku band is primarily used for satellite communications, most notably NASA's Tracking Data
Relay Satellite used for both space shuttle and ISS communications. Ku band satellites are also
used for backhauls and particularly for satellite from remote locations back to a television
network's studio for editing and broadcasting. The band is split into multiple segments that vary
by geographical region by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). NBC was the first
television network to uplink a majority of its affiliate feeds via Ku band in 1983.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 Segments and regions

o 1.1 The Americas
o 1.2 Europe and Africa
o 1.3 Australia
o 1.4 Others
o 1.5 Indonesia
• 2 Advantages
• 3 Disadvantages
• 4 References

• 5 External links

[edit] Segments and regions

[edit] The Americas

Segments in most of the Americas are represented by (ITU Region 2) and they are, the 11.7 to
12.2 GHz (Local Oscillator Frequency (LOF) 10.750 GHz) band is allocated to the FSS (fixed
service satellite, uplink 14.0 to 14.5 GHz). There are more than 22 FSS Ku-band satellites
orbiting over North America, each carrying 12 to 24 transponders, 20 to 120 watts per
transponder, and requiring a 0.8-m to 1.5-m antenna for clear reception.

The 12.2 to 12.7 GHz (LOF 11.250 GHz) segment is allocated to the BSS (broadcasting satellite
service). BSS/DBS direct broadcast satellites normally carry 16 to 32 transponders of 27 MHz
bandwidth running at 100 to 240 watts of power, allowing the use of receiver antennas as small
as 18 inches (450 mm).

[edit] Europe and Africa

Segments in those regions are represented by ITU Region 1 and they are, the 11.45 to 11.7 and
12.5 to 12.75 GHz bands are allocated to the FSS (fixed satellite service, uplink 14.0 to
14.5 GHz).

In Europe Ku band is used from 10.7 to 12.75 GHz (LOF Low 9.750 GHz, LOF High
10.600 GHz) for direct broadcast satellite services such as those carried by the Astra satellites.

The 11.7 to 12.5 GHz segment is allocated to the BSS (broadcasting satellite service).

[edit] Australia

Australia is part of ITU Region 3 and the Australian regulatory environment provides a class
license that covers downlinking from 12.25 GHz to 12.75 GHz and uplinking from 14.0 GHz to
14.5 GHz.

[edit] Others
Other ITU allocations have been made within the Ku band to the fixed service (microwave
towers), radio astronomy service, space research service, mobile service, mobile satellite
service, radiolocation service (radar), amateur radio service, and radionavigation. However, not
all of these services are actually operating in this band and others are only minor users.

[edit] Indonesia

The ITU has categorized Indonesia as Region P, countries with very high rain precipitation. This
statement has made many people unsure about using Ku-band (11 – 18 GHz) in Indonesia. If
frequencies higher than 10 GHz are used in a heavy rain area, a decrease in communication
availability results. This problem can be solved by using an appropriate link budget when
designing the wireless communication link. Higher power can overcome the loss to rain fade.

Measurements of rain attenuation in Indonesia have been done for satellite communication links
in Padang, Cibinong, Surabaya and Bandung. The DAH Model for rain attenuation prediction is
valid for Indonesia, in addition to the ITU model. The DAH model has become an ITU
recommendation since 2001 (Recommendation No. ITU-R P.618-7). This model can create a
99.7% available link so that Ku-band can be applied in Indonesia.

The use of the Ku-band for satellite communications in tropical regions like Indonesia is
becoming more frequent. Several satellites above Indonesia have Ku-band transponders, and
even Ka-band transponders. Newskies (NSS 6), launched in December 2002 and positioned at
95° East, contains only Ku-band transponders with a footprint on Indonesia (Sumatra, Java,
Borneo, Celebes, Bali, Nusa Tenggara, Moluccas). The iPSTAR satellite, launched in 2004 also
uses Ku band footprints. Measat has named the Ku-band footprint directed towards Indonesia
Ku-band for Indonesi. Measat 4 plans to cover the whole of Indonesia from West to East. This
satellite will be launched by Malaysia in 2007.

[edit] Advantages
Compared with C-band, Ku band is not similarly restricted in power to avoid interference with
terrestrial microwave systems, and the power of its uplinks and downlinks can be increased.
This higher power also translates into smaller receiving dishes and points out a generalization
between a satellite’s transmission and a dish’s size. As the power increases, the dish’s size can
decrease.[3]

The Ku band also offers a user more flexibility. A dish smaller size and a Ku band system’s
freedom from terrestrial operations simplifies finding a suitable dish site. Ku band is generally
cheaper and enables smaller antennas (both because of the higher frequency and a more focused
beam).[4] Kuband is also less vulnerable to rain fade than the Ka-band frequency spectrum.

[edit] Disadvantages
There are, however, some disadvantages of Ku band system. Especially at frequencies higher
than 10 GHz in heavy rain fall areas, a noticeable degradation occurs, due to the problems
caused by and proportional to the amount of rainfall (commonly known as "rain fade").[5] This
problem can be mitigated, however, by deploying an appropriate link budget strategy when
designing the satellite network, and allocating a higher power consumption to reduce rain fade
loss. The Ku band is not only used for television transmission, which some sources imply, but
also very much for digital data transmission via satellites, and for voice/audio transmissions.

The higher frequency spectrum of the Ku band is particularly susceptible to signal degradation,
considerably more so than C-band satellite frequency spectrum. A similar phenomenon, called
"snow fade" (where snow or ice accumulation significantly alters the focal point of a dish) can
also occur during winter precipitation. Also, the Kuband satellites typically require considerably
more power to transmit than the C-band satellites. Under both "rain fade" and "snow fade"
conditions, Ka and Ku band losses can be marginally (but significantly) reduced using super-
hydrophobic Lotus effect coatings.

[show]
v•d•e
Wireless video and data distribution methods

[edit] References
1. ^ IEEE Std 521 - 2002 URL only available to IEEE members
2. ^ Note that in the band 11.2–12 GHz the working definitions of Ku band and X band
overlap; satellite communications engineers would generally regard frequencies above
11.2 GHz as being part of the Ku band)
3. ^ Mirabito, M.,& Morgenstern, B. (2004). Satellites: Operations and Applications. The
New Communication Technologies (fifth edition). Burlington: Focal Press.
4. ^ Satellite Communications: Advantage and Disadvantages
5. ^ What is Ku band?

What is C Band?
C Band is the original frequency allocation for communications satellites.

C-Band uses 3.7-4.2GHz for downlink

and 5.925-6.425Ghz for uplink.

The lower frequencies used by C Band perform better under adverse weather conditions than the
Ku band or Ka band frequencies.

C Band Variants
Slight variations of C Band frequencies are approved for use in various parts of the world.

Band TX Frequency RX Frequency

Extended C Band 5.850 - 6.425 GHz 3.625 - 4.200 GHz

Super Extended C-Band 5.850 - 6.725 GHz 3.400 - 4.200 GHz
INSAT C-Band 6.725 - 7.025 GHz 4.500 - 4.800 GHz
Palapa C-Band 6.425 - 6.725 GHz 3.400 - 3.700 GHz
Russian C-Band 5.975 - 6.475 GHz 3.650 - 4.150 GHz
LMI C-Band 5.7250 - 6.025 GHz 3.700 - 4.000 GHz

C Band Dishes
C Band requires the use of a large dish, usually 6' across. C Band dishes vary between 3' and 9'
across, depending upon signal strength.
Because C Band dishes are so much larger than Ku and Ka Band dishes, a C Band dish is
sometimes referred to in friendly jest as a BUD (Big Ugly Dish).

What is Ku band?
Sumber : http://www.tech-faq.com/ku-band.shtml
The Ku band (Kurtz-under band) is primarily used for satellite communications, particularly for
editing and broadcasting satellite television. This band is split into multiple segments broken
down into geographical regions, as determined by the ITU (International Telecommunication
Union).

The Ku band is a portion of the

electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies ranging from 11.7 to 12.7GHz.
(downlink frequencies) and 14 to 14.5GHz (uplink frequencies).

The most common Ku band digital reception format is DVB (main profile video format) .vs the
studio profile digital video format or the full-blown Digicipher II 4DTV format.

The first commercial television network to extensively utilize the Ku Band for most of its
affiliate feeds was NBC, back in 1983.

The ITU Region 2 segments covering the majority of the Americas are between 11.7 and 12.2
GHz, with over 21 FSS North American Ku-band satellites currently orbiting.

Each requires a 0.8-m to 1.5-m antenna and carries twelve to twenty four transponders, of which
consume 20 to 120 watts (per transponder), for clear reception.

The 12.2 to 12.7 GHz segment of the Ku Band spectrum is allocated to the broadcasting satellite
service (BSS). These direct broadcast satellites typically carry 16 to 32 transponders.

Each provides 27 MHz in bandwidth, and consumes 100 to 240 watts each, accommodating
receiver antennas down to 450 mm (18 inches ).

The ITU Region 1 segments of the Ku spectrum represent Africa and Europe (11.45 to 11.7
GHz band range and 12.5 to 12.75 GHz band range) is reserved for the fixed satellite service
(FSS), with the uplink frequency range between 14.0 and 14.5 GHz).

Ku Band Difficulties
When frequencies higher than 10 GHz are transmitted and received used in a heavy rain fall
area, a noticeable degradation occurs, due to the problems caused by and proportional to the
amount of rain fall (commonly known as known as "rain fade").

This problem can be combatted, however, by deploying an appropriate link budget strategy
when designing the satellite network, and allocating a higher power consumption to overcome
rain fade loss. In terms of end-viewer TV reception,

it takes heavy rainfalls in excess of 100 mm per hour to have a noticeable effect.

The higher frequency spectrum of the Ku band is particularly susceptible to signal degradation-
considerably more so than C band satellite frequency spectrum, though the Ku band is less
vulnerable to rain fade than the Ka band frequency spectrum.

A similar phenomena, called "snow fade" (when snow accumulation significantly alters the focal
point of your dish) can also occur during Winter Season.

Also, the Ku band satellites typically require considerably more power to transmit than the C
band satellites. However, both Ku and Ka band satellite dishes to be smaller (varying in size
from 2' to 5' in diameter.)

Ku Band Satellite Service Downlink Usage Frequency

Range
The Ku band downlink uses frequencies between 11.7 and 12.7GHz.

The Ku band downlink frequencies are further subdivided according to their assigned use:

Ku Band Usage Downlink

Fixed Satellite Service 11.7 - 12.2GHz
Broadcast Satellite Service 12.2 - 12.7GHz

Services that can be found on the Ku-band include educational networks, business networks,
sports backhauls, tele- conferences, mobile news truck feeds, international programming, and
various SCPC (Single Channel Per Carrier) transmissions of analog audio, as well as FM audio
services.

If you already have a operational C-band system in place, you can retrofit it to accept Ku band
frequencies.

In order to do so, you will need to obtain a Ku-band LNB as well as a C/Ku band feed-horn, plus
some coax cable for your Ku-band LNB.

As for the coax cable recommended- RG-6 is optimal for low loss in the 950-1450 frequency
range- what Ku-band LNB processes. However, if RG-59 is your only viable option, it'll work in
a pinch.

Ku Band Dish Antenna Compatibility

Iif you have a solid dish, you should have no problem converting from C band, to Ku band.

However, with a mesh dish- if the "holes" in the mesh are greater than a quarter inch, the
chances of computability are not in your favor, due to the fact that your dish won't reflect Ku-
band signals properly.
Therefore, you'll want to strongly consider upgrading to either a solid dish, or a mesh dish in
which the hole size under 1/4", and ideally you'll want a dish that is 1 piece (or at least very few
pieces); as 4 section dish is more optimal than an 8 section dish.

The fewer the sections, the more accurate your parabola shape is and thereby the more difficult
it is for your dish to become warped (the smaller the number of seams- the better). And insofar
as dish mounts go, the H2H (Horizon-to-Horizon) dish mount is more desirable than a polar
mount.

This is due to the fact that the Ku-band demands that the dish antenna system is well-targeted
and able to closely follow the orbital arc, of which the H2H mount does quite admirably, as
compared to a polar mount. Also, bear in mind that you will be adjusting both the azimuth and
elevation, which can be a bit tricky occasionally.

Importance of Satellite Antenna Dish Parabola

The parabolic shape of your dish is of critical importance, as warpage causes signal degradation
via mis-reflection, seriously down-grading your overall system performance. Some tape and
string is all that is required to do a quick warpage check and some tape.

Anchor a piece of string, stretched as tight as possible, "north" to "south" across your dish face,
edge to edge. You'll want to do the same thing again, with another piece of string, only "east" to
"west" across the dish face- at 90 degree angles. Be sure that both strings are tight-

If the strings come together anywhere but the direct center, then your dish has sustained warp
damage and needs to be bent back into proper parabola shape, for optimal performance. If they
connect in the center of your dish, likely that your dish is not warped.

So therefore, you'll want to use either the tri-supports or quad supports , as they will greatly
assist in keeping your Ku-band feed-horn highly stable, even in high winds.

When your button-hook feed moving in the wind, your Ku-band reception can can easily drop
out. By putting guy-wires on the button-hook feed, you'll create the much-needed support, in the
event you are not able to obtain a tri support or quad support.
What is Ka band?
The Ka band uplink uses frequencies between 27.5GHz and 31Ghz and the downlink uses
frequencies between 18.3 and 18.8Ghz and between 19.7 and 20.2Ghz.

Ka band dishes can be much smaller than

C band dishes. Ka band dishes vary from 2' to 5' in diameter.

Ka band satellites typically transmit with much more power than C band satellites.

The higher frequencies of Ka band are significantly more vulnerable to signal quality problems
caused by rainfall, known as rainfade

What is L band?
L band is a fequency range between 390MHz and 1.55GHz which is used for satellite
communications and for terrestrial communications between satellite equipment.

The high frequencies utilized by C band,

Ku band, and Ka band would suffer from high signal loss when transported over a copper coax
cable such as an Intra-Facility Link.

An LNB is used to convert these higher frequency bands to L band, which can be transmitted
over the IFL and processed by the IDU.

Some satellites transmit on L band, such as GPS satellites.

What is S band?
S band is a frequency range from approximately 1.55 to 5.2GHz which is used for Digital Audio
Radio Satellite (DARS) satellite radio systems such as Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite
Radio .
Vsat 120
General Features

The VSAT 120 is designed for receiving and transmitting in Ku band.

The high reliability and stability in aiming is determinant in making this antenna the most
advanced equipment in maritime satellite communications, allowing transmission and reception
in every weather condition with excellent signal quality.

The heart of the system is the inertial solid state stabilization system installed on the antenna.
The VSAT is also provided with an automatic spiral search that allows faster satellite pointing
procedure.The two systems together make the antenna the most effective equipment you can
find on the market.

[Javascript required to view Flash movie, please turn it on and refresh this page]

The advanced solutions adopted should not impress too much.The totally integrated GPS and
the internal Gyro interface device make the antenna a definitely user friendly apparatus.
The A.C.U. needs just the operator to select the satellite to point.

DOWNLOAD BROCHURE

technical characteristics
Active stabilization on the three orthogonal axes.

· Gyroscopic compensation of ship movements in yaw, roll and pitch.

· Pointing capability with satellite in zenith position.
· Automatic search, pointing and tracking.
· Satellite identification through Integrated DVB-S receiver
· Step tracking for antenna pointing optimisation.
· Simplifyfied satellite selection and search

The system is composed by two major blocks :

Above deck equipment, under a radome:

· Stabilized pedestal with rotary joint.
· Parabolic carbon fibre antenna, feed and orthomode tee
· Transmitting/receiving set for Ku band
Under deck:
· Antenna Control Unit.
· Modem

Type

front fed
Parabolic dish 1.2 m
Frequency band Ku
Transmission frequency 13,75 ÷ 14,50 GHz
Receive frequency 10,70 ÷ 12,75 GHz
Transmit gain >43,2 dBi @ 14,25 GHz
Tx Beam width +/- 0.36 °
Receive gain >41,5 dBi a 12,70 GHz
Pointing losses <1 dB ( ± 0.21 ° )
Sidelobe patterns Eutelsat EESS 502 standard M

Sumber : http://www.vsat-technology.com/our-products/vsat-antenna/vsat-120/

What are Satellite Systems?

The basic types of satellite systems include geostationary (GEO), Low Earth Orbit (LEO),
Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), and Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO) satellites. There are also public
and private satellite systems such as Television Receive Only (TVRO), Direct Broadcast
Satellite (DBS), Global Positioning System (GPS), and multibeam satellite operations.

Geosynchronous satellites orbit the Earth

on repeatedly regular points over time. Each GEO satellite is stationary over one spot above the
equator and therefore does not need any tracking from receiving and transmitting antennas on
the Earth. GEO satellites enable the coverage of weather events. They are especially useful for
monitoring severe local storms and tropical cyclones. They are best for television transmission
and high-speed data transmission.

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite systems fly very closely to the surface of the Earth, up to 1,500
kilometers in altitude. They deliver more significant voice quality over GEOs and transmit
signals with a small margin of delay. Some LEO systems are designed for satellite phones or
global mobile personal communications systems . These can carry voice traffic among other
data formats.

Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellite systems operate at about 10,000 kilometers above the
Earth, making it lower than GEO orbits but higher than LEO orbits. They have a larger capacity
than LEOs. This enables them more flexibility in satisfying shifting market demands for voice
or data services .

Highly-elliptical orbit (HEO) satellite systems orbit the Earth in an elliptical path unlike the
LEO's and GEO's circular paths. Its elliptical orbit allows a wider view of the Earth and
maximizes the amount of time each satellite spends in viewing populated areas. It therefore
requires fewer satellites than LEOs while providing an excellent line of sight.

TVRO (Television Receive-Only) and DBS (Direct Broadcast Satellite) are satellite TV
systems. TVRO relies on unencrypted feeds transmitted using open standards. They are also
often referred to as C-Band Satellite TV, Big Dish TV, or Big Ugly Dish (BUD).

DBS works on higher frequencies. It is capable of transmitting higher power signals. DBS was
primarily intended for home reception. This is why it is also known as Direct to Home satellite.

DBS satellites are owned by satellite TV providers. This means it is restricted to provide free
channels.

A global positioning satellite system receives and compares the signals from orbiting GPS
satellites to determine geographic location. Each satellite can transmit its exact location with a
timed reference signal which the GPS uses to determine the distance between satellites. The
location can be marked by calculating the point at which all distances cross. The information can
be displayed in latitude or longitude format, or as a position on a computer map.
The multibeam satellite operation uses Spatial Division Multiple Access (SDMA) technology.
This allows a single satellite to simultaneously communicate to 2 different satellites using
several directional antennas.

What are Satellite Dishes?

The major types of satellite dishes are motor-driven dishes, multi-satellites, VSAT, and ad hoc
satellites. Other types include DTH, SMATV, CABD, automatic tracking satellite dishes, and
big ugly dishes.

A motor-driven satellite dish is mounted

on a pole which rotates around an axis to detect and receive various satellite signals in the sky. It
is driven by a stepper motor, which can also be controlled to face any satellite position in the
sky. It's standards, DiSEqC, USALs, and 36v positioners are supported by many receivers.

DiSEqC stands for Digital Satellite Equipment Control. It is a communication protocol specially
designed to be used between a satellite receiver and a device that may be a multi-dish switch or
a small antenna rotor. USALS, or Universal Satellite Automatic Location System, is a satellite
dish motor protocol that can automatically create a list of available satellite positions in a
motorized satellite dish setup. It is also known as DiSEqC 1.3, Go X, or Go to XX.

Multi-satellite dishes can pick up data transmissions from several satellite dishes at the same
time. Its design enables simultaneous reception from multiple different satellite locations
without having to reposition the dish.

A VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) is a 2-way satellite ground station that provides two-
way satellite Internet communication for consumers and private networks. It is commonly used
to transmit narrowband data (credit card, polling, or radio-frequency identification ) or
broadband data (satellite Internet access to remote locations, VoIP, or video).

Satellite operators configure VSAT networks in topologies. A star topology means the VSAT
network uses a central uplink site to transmit data to and from each VSAT terminal via satellite.
A mesh topology, on the other hand, minimizes the need for a central uplink site because VSAT
terminals are allowed to relay data via satellite by acting as a hub to another terminal.

Ad hoc satellite dishes are used mainly as recipient reflector antennas of radio frequencies. It is
easier to pick up signals on ad hoc satellite dishes when used with a DTH (Direct to Home)
satellite.

DTH dishes are used in a single residence. SMATV, or Satellite Master Antenna Dishes, on the
other hand, are shared among numerous dwellings. It is also called Communal Antenna
Broadcast Distribution (CABD).

ATS (Automatic Tracking Satellite) dishes are used in vehicles in motion. They use gyroscopes
to detect changes in position and Global Positioning System (GPS) sensors. Automatic
tracking dishes use satellite identification data and an integrated Digital Video Broadcasting
(DVB) decoder to identify the satellite it is pointing to.

The term "big ugly dish" is a colloquial term for a TVRO (Television Receive Only) satellite
dish. The term refers to its large-sized receiving dishes. TVRO dishes are used to receive
satellite television signals from fixed service satellites in the microwave C-band. The system
relies on unencrypted feeds transmitted using open standards.
What is an LNB?
An LNB - Low Noise Block (also called an LNC- Low Noise Converter), is used for
communications (broadcast) satellite reception. The LNB is usually affixed either in or on the
satellite dish.

The purpose of the LNB is to utilize the

super heterodyne effect; and amplify and convert a wide block (band) of frequencies. This helps
compensate the signal loss associated with typical coaxial cable at relatively high frequencies.

The term 'low noise' relates to the quality of the 1st stage input amplifier transistor, measured in
either called Noise Temperature units, Noise Figure units or Noise Factor units.

Both Noise Factor and Noise Figure are easily converted into Noise Temperature units. A lower
Noise Temperature rating is always better (i.e. an LNB with a Noise Temperature of 100K is 2x
as good as one rated 200K).

The term 'Block' refers to the conversion of a higher block of microwave frequencies (received
from the satellite- typically in the range 4 GHz to 21 GHz) being down-converted to a lower
block range of frequencies for the receiver.

The "low-noise" part also indicates that amplification and mixing takes place prior to cable
attenuation, in a circuit that requires no power supply or receiver.

With the high frequencies that satellites operate at, it is critical that the noise is controlled prior
to signal processing.

An LNB helps keep the overall sound and picture of satellite TV from becoming greatly
degraded, without the need of introducing a much larger dish reflector.

For wide-band satellite television carrier reception (generally 27 MHz wide band), the tolerance
(accuracy) of the LNB local oscillator frequency needs to be in the range of ±500kHz,. This
makes low cost DRO's (dielectric oscillators) feasible.

However, for reception of narrow bandwidth carriers (i.e. 16-QAM)- a highly stable, low phase
noise dedicated LNB (local) oscillator is required.

They typically contain an internal crystal oscillator (or 10 MHz reference from the indoor unit)
and a PLL (Phase-Locked Loop) oscillator, and naturally tend to be noticeably more expensive.

LNB Feedhorns (LNBF's)

DBS (Direct Broadcast Satellite) dishes use an LNBF, which matches the antenna's feedhorn up
with the LNB.

Often times, small diplexers are utilized to distribute the resulting IF signal (typically in the 950
MHz to 1450 MHz range) and "piggyback" these signals with same TV cable that carries lower-
frequency (terrestrial) television signals from a typical outdoor (terrestrial) antenna.

The TV set receiver also has another diplexer that separates the signals.

Universal LNB's
A universal LNB can receive both polarizations and the full range of frequencies in both the Ku
and C satellite band.
Some LNB's can receive both polarizations simultaneously (through 2 different connectors),
while other LNB's have either switchable or adjustable polarization.

Typical Universal LNB specifications are:

• Local Oscillator (LO): 9.75 GHz /10.6 GHz

• Frequency: 10.7 GHz-12.75 GHz
• Noise Figure (NF): 0.7 dB
• Polarization: Linear

Standard DBS LNB example:

• Local Oscillator (LO): 11.25 GHz

• Frequency: 12.2 GHz-12.7 GHz
• Noise Figure (NF): 0.7 dB
• Polarization: Circular

Typical North American C-band LNB specs:

• Local Oscillator (LO): 5.15 GHz

• Frequency: 3.6-4.2 GHz
• Noise Figure (NF): 15 to 100 Kelvins (uses Kelvin ratings as opposed to dB rating)
• Polarization: Linear

Dual and Quad LNB's are multiple LNB's contained in one package, to allow for multiple
receivers (on one dish).

A Dual LNB consists of 2 universal LNBs (affixed at a small offset angle in a single housing),
and uses only one "F" connector and coaxial cable connection to the converter box.

Though also a Dual LNB system, the Monobloc LNB has only one output and only one
(satellite) transmission is viewable at a time, as compared to dish systems which have two or
more separate LNB's, each connected to separate receivers, in which both transmissions can be
simultaneously viewed or recorded.

The Monobloc LNB was specifically designed to receive signals from satellites that are spaced
very close together. For example, parts of Europe use a Monobloc LNB to receive the Astra 1
(19E) and Hotbird (13E) satellites, eliminating the need for an expensive rotator.

Quad Universal LNB (a.k.a. Quad-Output LNB)

The Quad Universal LNB can accommodate four separate receivers, as each receiver has
independent control of band and polarization via 13v. and 17v. and 22kHz on/off switching
respectively.

This LNB is primarily deployed in the Sky Digiboxes (with 2 LNB inputs and internal hard
disks for recording one program while you're watching another).

Two LNB outputs would go to one "Sky Plus" Digibox, leaving the other 2 LNB outputs for
either 2 standard Digiboxes or to one additional Sky Plus Digibox.

OCTO LNB's
An OCTO LNB is the same as above, except that it has 8 independent outputs.
Quattro Universal LNB's
This is a 4-output LNB, specifically designed for use as a "head end" I.F. distribution system
(for apartment complexes). LNB's can generally supply (up to) 16 outputs for separate dwellings
or Digiboxes. The 4 outputs of the Quattro Universal LNB are:

• Low band horizontal polarization

• High band horizontal polarization
• Low band vertical polarization
• High band vertical polarization

As a general rule of thumb, any standard (universal) LNB will work with any circular (prime
focus) dish or offset focus dish. Though actually taller than it is wide, an offset focus dish
appears circular, as far as the LNB is concerned.

However, dishes that are wider than they are tall require a special LNB.

LNB's that are used for satellite TV reception contain DRO's (dielectric resonator stabilized
local oscillators), which is a 'pellet' of material that resonates at the required frequency.

A DRO is relatively unstable, as compared to a quartz crystal resonator or oscillator.

Tolerances vary by as much as +/- 250 kHz to 2 MHz (Ku band), which includes the extremes of
the full operating range.

Because most TV carriers are quite bandwidth-wide (i.e. 27 MHz band) even a 2 MHz error can
successfully be received.

Though PLL LNB's are typically more expensive, the advantage of deploying an external
reference PLL LNB is that constant temperature stability is much easier to maintain.

LNB Supply Power

The DC supply (typically in the 13v. to 19v. range) is cable line-fed to the LNB, and it is often
times possible to alter the polarization by changing this voltage.

Alteration via the frequency band is also possible, albeit less common. Efficiently weather-
proofing the outdoor connector is critical, as oxidation and corrosion occur rapidly. This, in turn,
directly relates to signal degradation.

Both the outer and inner conductors must make solid electrical contact.

High resistance will cause the LNB to switch permanently into the low voltage state, over time,
and lead to overall signal deterioration.

If you are physically trouble-shooting your system, be aware that the electrical antenna contacts
between the BUC chassis and LNB are often times difficult to navigate, and 'earth loop' currents
may also propose a problem.

As a matter of fact, it is entirely possible to become severely shocked in discovering 50 Hz or 60

Hz AC Mains currents on the outer conductors. Do be extremely cautious.

The quality and smoothing of the DC supplies used for the LNB's is also of great importance.

Testing an LNB
 • Check the ammeter drawing the DC current from the power supply (approx. number of
mA's provided by the manufacturer).
• Poor quality (or corroded) F type connections are the most typical cause of concern.
• The center pin (of the F connector plug) should stick out ~ 2mm, away from the threaded
surrounding ring.
• A satellite finder power meter is also helpful. By pointing the LNB up at outer space
(clear sky), the noise temperature contribution from the surroundings becomes
negligible.

The meter reading will directly correspond to the noise temperature of the LNB.

If, for example, pointing the meter to outer space reads 100K (K is short for Kelvin, which
measures absolute temperature), then you point the LNB towards the ground (say at a
temperature of approximately 300K), the noise power meter reading should go up accordingly,
to roughly 400K (100K +300K).

LNBs that fail on a particular polarization (or particular frequency band), may only do so at
certain temperatures.

If you're attempting to replace an LNB in a VSAT system, be sure to check the both the supply
voltage and the transmit reject filter; as continuously blowing up LNB's can get cost-prohibitive,
quite rapidly.

Overloading an LNB
If you have a very large dish (i.e. ~7m diameter), and aim it at a satellite with signals intended
for small dish antennas (i.e. ~70cm diameter), then the overall 20 dB increase in signal strength
(being fed into the LNB) may be ample enough to overload some of the internal transistor
amplifier stages.

Because this is not always obvious, it is wise to measure the composite output power of the LNB
(using a power meter) and compare this with the -1 dB compression point supplied by the
manufacturer.

Alternatively, you can do an antenna pattern test (on both a high power and a low power
satellite). Any non linearity problem (with the high power satellite) will become clearly
discernible.

To overcome this problem, you may need to invest in a special LNB (low gain or high power
output level), if you have a large dish.

The "poor man's" field expedient means of fully testing an LNB is to hook it up to the desired
dish (aligning the dish and LNB) and connect it to a satellite receiver.

Note the time of day and standard thermometer temperature, and check to see if each channel is
there.

If all channels are present, take note and wait until there is a temperature variance of ~40 to 50
degrees higher or lower (Fahrenheit), and perform the exact same test again.

If it continues to work through a net temperature swing of at least 40 degrees, then the LNB
should get you by for at least a while.

Keep in mind, however, that the reverse is not necessarily true. Missing channels can also be due
to a faulty of the cable, receiver, or the dish (due to distortion, warpage, or misalignment).
Good old-fashioned process of elimination (by swapping the dish, the cable and the receiver),
and bearing in mind that not all receivers work correctly with all LNB's will go a long way in
aiding your trouble-shooting endeavors.

Also bear in mind that while a cheap satellite finder meter will give you the average strength of
all frequencies, and an expensive satellite finder meter can let you target specific frequencies-
neither will indicate to you whether frequencies are missing.

Lastly, most testers and meters draw off of low amperage battery power. If the battery can not
supply enough current to the LNB, it'll ultimately give you a false reading.

An LNBF is an LNB with an integrated feedhorn.

Most LNB's in use today are actually

LNBF's.

A Dual LNB is an LNB with two outputs.

A Dual LNB will enable you to connect

two televisions to your satellite dish and tune into different channels on each television.

Triple and Quad LNB's are also available, for viewers with more than two television receivers.
What is a Linear LNB?
LNB stands for low noise blocker and it is essentially an amplifier on the end of your small
satellite TV dish or communications dish. The "Linear" portion of Linear LNB stands for the
characteristics of the radio waves that are transmitted via the satellite in space to your dish
(LNB).

Two Types of Polarization

Circular Polarization

Circular polarization is a characteristic of radio waves that are transmitted from a satellite in
space, in which the actual radio waves rotate in a spiral. The spiral of radio waves either rotates
clockwise or counter clockwise. A great analogy of how circular radio waves approach your
satellite dish (LNB) is by picturing an airplane propeller. The airplane propeller follows a
specific path, but as it approaches the radio wave is spinning vertically.

Linear Polarization

Linear Polarization is the characteristic of radio wave in which the radio wave rotates on a single
horizontal plane. A great analogy is instead of an airplane propeller, the radio wave approaches
your satellite dish in the form of a helicopter rotor. The radio waves spin horizontally.

Besides the direction of the wave being either horizontal or vertical, satellite receivers usually
only are able to work with one type of polarization. However, they are able to pick up both
signals, the difference is about 50% loss in signal strength (-3dB).

Determining Polarization
Usually Linear Polarized LNB's will use specific terms to describe their polarization. They are
either "FSS" or "FTA". You should also note that a Universal LNB is always linear. Circular
polarized LNB's usually use the terms "DSS" or "DBS" to denote that its satellite signal is
polarized in nature.

What is Downlink?
Downlink is the signal path from a satellite towards the earth.

The opposite of downlink is uplink.

Uplink is the signal path from an earth station towards the satellite.

Downlink Frequencies
Satellite Band Downlink Frequency
C Band 3.7 - 4.2 GHz
Ku Band 11.7 - 12.7 GHz
Ka Band 18.3 - 20.2 GHz

What is Uplink?
Uplink is the signal path from an earth station to a satellite.

The opposite of uplink is downlink.

Downlink is the signal path from the satellite toward the earth.

Uplink Frequencies
Satellite Band Uplink Frequency
C Band 5.925 - 6.425 GHz
Ku Band 14 - 14.5 GHz
Ka Band 27.5 - 31 GHz

What is VSAT?
VSAT is an abbreviation for a Very Small
Aperture Terminal. It is basically a two-way satellite ground station with a less than 3 meters tall
(most of them are about 0.75 m to 1.2 m tall) dish antenna stationed. The transmission rates of
VSATs are usually from very low and up to 4 Mbit/s. These VSATs' primary job is accessing
the satellites in the geosynchronous orbit and relaying data from terminals in earth to other
terminals and hubs. They will often transmit narrowband data, such as the transactions of credit
cards, polling, RFID (radio frequency identification ) data, and SCADA (Supervisory Control
and Data Acquisition), or broadband data, such as satellite Internet, VoIP, and videos. However,
the VSAT technology is also used for various types of communications.

Equatorial Communications first used the spread spectrum technology to commercialize the
VSATs, which were at the time C band (6 GHz) receive only systems. This commercialization
led to over 30,000 sales of the 60 cm antenna systems in the early 1980s. Equatorial
Communications sold about 10,000 more units from 1984 to 1985 by developing a C band (4
and 6 GHz) two way system with 1 m x 0.5 m dimensions.

In 1985, the current world's most used VSATs, the Ku band (12 to 14 GHz) was co-developed
by Schlumberger Oilfield Research and Hughes Aerospace. It is primarily used to provide
portable network connection for exploration units, particularly doing oil field drilling.

Implementations of VSAT
Currently, the largest VSAT network consists of over 12,000 sites and is administered by
Spacenet and MCI for the US Postal Service (USPS). Walgreens Pharmacy, Dollar General,
CVS, Riteaid, Wal-Mart, Yum! Brands (such as Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver's, and
other fast food chains), GTEC, SGI, and Intralot also utilizes large VSAT networks. Many huge
car corporations such as Ford and General Motors also utilizes the VSAT technology, such as
transmitting and receiving sales figures and orders, along with announcing international
communications, service bulletins, and for distance learning courses. An example of this is the
"FordStar Network."

Two way satellite Internet providers also use the VSAT technology. Companies like StarBand,
WildBlue, and HughesNet in the United States and SatLynx, Bluestream, and Technologie
Satelitarne in Europe, and many other broadband services around the world in rural areas where
high speed Internet connections cannot be provided use it too. A statistic from December 2004
showed that over a million VSATs were in place.

VSAT Configurations
Most of the current VSAT networks use a topology:

• Star topology: This topology uses a central uplink site (eg. Network operations center
(NOC)), which transports the data to and from each of the VSAT terminals using
satellites
• Mesh topology: In this configuration, each VSAT terminal will relay data over to another
terminal through the satellite, acting as a hub, which also minimizes the need for an
uplink site
• Star + Mesh topology: This combination can be achieved (as some VSAT networks do)
by having multiple centralized uplink sites connected together in a multi-star topology
which is in a bigger mesh topology. This topology does not cost so much in maintaining
the network while also lessening the amount of data that needs to be relayed through one
or more central uplink sites in the network.

VSAT's Strengths
VSAT technology has many advantages, which is the reason why it is used so widely today. One
is availability. The service can basically be deployed anywhere around the world. Also, the
VSAT is diverse in that it offers a completely independent wireless link from the local
infrastructure, which is a good backup for potential disasters. Its deployability is also quite
amazing as the VSAT services can be setup in a matter of minutes. The strength and the speed of
the VSAT connection being homogenous anywhere within the boundaries is also a big plus. Not
to forget, the connection is quite secure as they are private layer-2 networks over the air. The
pricing is also affordable, as the networks themselves do not have to pay a lot, as the broadcast
download scheme (eg. DVB-S) allows them to serve the same content to thousands of locations
at once without any additional costs. Last but not least, most of the VSAT systems today use
onboard acceleration of protocols (eg. TCP, HTTP), which allows them to delivery high quality
connections regardless of the latency.

VSAT Drawbacks
As with everything, VSAT also has its downsides. Firstly, because the VSAT technology
utilizes the satellites in geosynchronous orbit, it takes a minimum latency of about 500
milliseconds every trip around. Therefore, it is not the ideal technology to use with protocols
that require a constant back and forth transmission, such as online games. Also, surprisingly, the
environment can play a role in slowing down the VSATs. Although not as bad as one way TV
systems like DirecTV and DISH Network, the VSAT still can have a dim signal, as it still relies
on the antenna size, the transmitter's power, and the frequency band. Last but not least, although
not that big of a concern, installation can be a problem as VSAT services require an outdoor
antenna that has a clear view of the sky. An awkward roof, such as with skyscraper designs, can
become problematic.