Satellite Network Design

Satellite Network Design
Robert Girard
Customer Solutions Engineering
1
Agenda
• Which Network is Best for My Network?
• Service Level Discussion
• Satellite Network Technology Options
• Total Cost of Ownership (OPEX Vs CAPEX)
• Procurement & Logistics
• Space Segment, Satellite Equipment
• Registration with local authorities
• Logistics around equipment shipping and installation
• Satellite Economics – Beyond the Cost per MHz

• Procuring a Satellite Service
• Cost Structure of a Satellite Network
• Comparison of Different Satellite Networks
• Not All Satellites Perform Equally
2
Agenda

3
Which Network is Best for My Network?
Service Level Elements
• The most commonly discussed Service Level elements are those at the IP Layer:
• Committed Information Rate (CIR)
• Burstable Information Rate (BIR)
• Oversubscription Ratio (??)
• Quality of Service (??)
• The common Service Level Elements can be met only if the following are ensured:
• Latency
• Bit Error Rate (BER)
• Availability
• What is a “1Mbps Service”??
• 1Mbps dedicated outbound, 1Mpbs dedicated inbound??
• 1Mbps dedicated outbound, 256kbps dedicated inbound??
• 1Mbps shared (5:1) outbound with 256kbps CIR, 256kbps shared (5:1) inbound with 32kbps CIR??
4
Service Level Elements
•Latency
•Bit Error Rate (BER)
•Availability
… sufficient margins must be included to ensure link integrity …

Optimizing The Satellite Link
5
Agenda
6
Satellite Network Technology Options
Necessary Inputs to Determine Proper Solution

• Satellite • Voice Traffic
• Frequency Band • Number of VoIP Lines
• Hub Antenna Size • % Usage on Average

• % Usage Maximum
• Hub Location
• Remote Antenna Size • Data Traffic
• CIR
• Remote Locations
• BIR
• Service Level
• Oversubscription Ratio
• Latency, Jitter, etc.
• Video Traffic
• Availability, Downtime, etc.
• Quality
7
• Hub-based shared mechanism (Statistical Multiplexing)

• Timing references, burst guard band etc to remotes creates overhead
• TDM / TDMA
• DVB, DVB-S2
• “IP Packet Switching over an MCPC Carrier”
• Single Channel per Carrier (SCPC)

• Non-contended Capacity per site
• All “bursts” are traffic, one after another not overhead
• TDM/MF-SCPC
8
Advantage Disadvantage
Dedicated bandwidth for each Each remote requires its own

remote inbound space segment
Provides superior Quality of Expensive OPEX if each remote

Service for mission critical bandwidth is not fully utilized
applications
Low Latency and Low Jitter SCPC modems typically more

expensive than TDMA modems
Best transmission method for Fixed data rates on the inbound

real-time applications, voice, links
data, video, broadcast, etc.
TDM/MF-SCPC Model
9
Advantage Disadvantage
Sharing of satellite bandwidth High Latency and Increased

Jitter
Lower overall OPEX compared Demanding remotes can burden

to dedicated pipes the system
Good for low data rate Fragmentation of packets. Less

applications effective for voice and video
Low cost remotes Expensive hub equipment
Large population of users All remotes must be designed

around worst case link
TDM/MF-TDMA Model
10
Agenda

11
Total Cost of Ownership (OPEX Vs CAPEX)
• Operating Expenses (OPEX)

Operating
Expenses
• Satellite space segment
Site
Rental
Operations & Power

• Teleport operations Maintenance
Transmission OPEX Spares/Support
• Licensing
Training
• Capital Expenses (CAPEX) Capital

Expenses Transmission
Equipment
• Hardware Network Civil

Equipment Works
• Antenna, RF, HPA, Converters, Modem etc. Site NRO
Equipment
• Routers Switching equipment etc.
• Logistical Challenges
Network Operations + Depreciation
• Transport, Duties, Taxes etc
Total Cost of Ownership
12
OPEX COSTS
• Satellite Segment
• New Satellites bring better peformance
• Better Modulation and Forward Error Correction Techniques
• Teleport operations
• Remote login options
• VNO Options
• Licensing
• Liberalisation of Markets reduces the licensing fees
13
CAPEX (Hub Hardware)
• Two models of hub hardware cost assignment
• Per project
• Over multiple projects
• Hub platform costs can introduce barriers to entry

• Entry Level Hubs introduced to reduce barrier
• Virtual Network Operator (VNO) concept
• Growth costs must also be considered

• Function of how many end customers a “starter kit” can support
• Equipment re-use
• Some platforms use the same hardware for hub and remote
14
CAPEX (Remote Hardware)
• Remote costs can be large part of the total cost of a network
• Portion of TCO grows with the size of the network
• Indoor Kit
• Low-cost TDMA/DVB-RCS Indoor Units (IDUs) have dropped in price to $1,000
• SCPC modems $6,000+
• Outdoor Kit
• Antenna and ODU sizing based on either shared carrier size or dedicated carrier size
• Logistical Challenges
• Shipping and installation in remote area
15
• Two different data rates are important when sizing a TDMA network…
• IP Rate
• IP Rate is the actual IP throughput including IP headers and data at Layer 3 of the OSI model
• Represents actual LAN traffic on both remote and hub LANs
• Information Rate
• Information Rate is the actual Layer 2 information, including TDMA framing overhead, sent over the satellite
• Link budgets must account for Information Rate, not IP Rate

• Different TDMA platforms have different IP Rate / Information Rate ratios
• Depends on TDMA satellite access method
• aloha, slotted aloha, deterministic, selective, etc.
16
• Data
Modulation • Actual Information
• Layer 2 O/H
FEC
• Control
Layer 2 O/H • Addressing *
Data • Guard Band *
Mbps
• Reference Bursts *
• FEC
• Added Redundancy
• Modulation
• Number of Bits/Hz
Mbps vs. MHz

17
Modulation …Service REVENUE based upon

IP Rate in Mbps…
FEC …Main OPEX cost based upon
total MHz required…
Layer 2 O/H
Data
Mbps
An end user’s service level requirements and

per-site price points will determine what
realistic margins may be achievable…
Mbps vs. MHz Revenue and Cost Bases

18
Spectral Efficiency vs. Eb/No
19
Bandwidth vs. Power
• Allocated BW • Power Equivalent BW

• Portion of transponder • Fraction of transponder power required to close
actually used link
• Linear function of modulation and FEC • Complicated function of hub antenna, remote
antenna and satellite specifics along with
• Decreases with higher order mods and FECs
required Eb/No
• “Bandwidth Limited” links have greater allocated
• Increases with higher order mods and FECs
BW than PEB
• “Power Limited” links have greater PEB than
Allocated
20
Bandwidth vs. Power
16QAM 7/8
16QAM 3/4
8PSK 5/6
8PSK 2/3
QPSK 7/8
QPSK 1/2 = 100% QPSK 3/4
QPSK 1/2
-110 -100 -90 -80 -70 -60 -50 -40 -30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110
Relative Bandwidth (%) – for same data rate
21
Forward Error Correction
• Advances in FEC can offer ≥3-5 dB of performance over currently used methods
• 3 dB of Coding Gain can:
• Reduce required bandwidth by 50% (OPEX)
• Increase data throughput by a factor of 2 (OPEX)
• Reduce antenna size by 30% (CAPEX)
• Reduce transmitter power by a factor of 2 (CAPEX)
• Provides more link margin (Service Level)
• What to look out for is

• Latency (Translates to Service Level)
• Eb/No Required (Translates to power; CAPEX)
• Bandwidth (Translates to allocated capacity on satellite; OPEX)
22
• Turbo Product Coding (TPC)

• Iterative decoding process produces a likelihood and confidence level measure for each bit
• Low latency (vs. TCC, Vit/RS)
• Due to the fact that there is no need to buffer for interleaving
• Turbo Product Coding

• Lower Eb/No requires less power
• Higher efficiency requires less bandwidth
Less Power
• Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) Viterbi / RS

TPC
• Basis of new DVB-S2 standard
Less BW
• Third-class of Turbo Code
• Turbo Product Coding (TPC)
• Turbo Convolutional Coding (TCC)
• Iteratively decoded block code

• Performs 0.7 dB – 1.2 dB better than TPC at low FEC rates (3/4 and below)
• While coding gain is greater, processing delay can be an issue
23
Relative Efficiency of Alternative Schemes

Mbps / MHz
DVB-S2
LDPC
8PSK
CinC
DVB-S
QPSK 16/32APSK
Time
24
So Which Solution is Best??
TDM / MF - SCPC TDM / MF-TDMA
25
So Which Solution is Best??
• Satellite • Voice Traffic
• Frequency Band – Number of VoIP Lines
• Hub Antenna Size – % Usage on Average

– % Usage Maximum
• Hub Location
• Remote Antenna Size • Data Traffic
– CIR
• Remote Locations
– BIR
• Service Level
– Oversubscription Ratio
– Latency, Jitter
• Video Traffic
– Availability, Downtime
– Quality
… only with this information can one

determine the best option…
26
Agenda

27
Procurement & Logistics
• Procure the correct beam Spot, Zone, Hemi or Zone beam for business requirement
• Procure Satellite Equipment according the linkbudget and business requirement

• Register the frequency and equipment with local authorities

• Find logistical solution to the deployment of the remote terminals
28
Agenda
29
Procuring a Satellite Service: The Full Story
• Alpha and Beta are competing Mobile Network Operators.
• They both need satellite connectivity to support their operations.
• However, they have a very different procurement approach.
Alpha Beta
1. Selects the satellite operator which has the 1. Designs the satellite network taking into
lowest price per MHz. consideration equipment and bandwidth
2. Then, buys the cheapest equipment requirements.
available on the market. 2. Performs a Total Cost of Ownership analysis
3. Doesn’t fully take into account future including CAPEX and OPEX.
requirements in terms of equipment, 3. Considers future requirements to select an
coverage and bandwidth. effective invest-as-you-grow solution.
4. Trains in-house satellite experts to keep
optimizing the network
30
What could be the consequences of the two different approaches?
• An initial “cheap” design may prove to be more expensive over time:
• Company Alpha may need to invest more than Beta to expand
the network
• With limitations of ground equipment, bandwidth-saving techniques can hardly be
implemented.
• Possible lower performance

• Service availability, satellite performance, technical support, … matter.
Always compare apples with apples!
31
• Example with Alpha and Beta’s respective services :
Alpha Beta
Information Rate 10 x 1 Mbps 10 x 1 Mbps
Efficiency 1.6 bps/Hz 2.8 bps/Hz
Required bandwidth 6.25 MHz 3.57 MHz
Price $/MHz 2,000 $/MHz* 2,500 $/MHz*
Bandwidth MRC 12,500 $/month 8,929 $/month
Equipment investment 100,000 $* 180,000 $*
Contract length 36 months 36 months
Total Cost of Ownership 550,000 $ 501,429 $
Equipment feature Entry-level modems, Advanced modems with Carrier Cancellation

Modcod 8PSK 3/4, Technique and ACM,
Roll-off factor 40% Modcod QPSK 7/8, Roll-off 25%
Satellite performance C-band global beam low EIRP C-band zone beam high EIRP
* Indicative figures
32
• In addition to saving more money despite a higher initial investment:
• Beta’s service reaches virtually 100% availability thanks to ACM (Adaptive
Coding and Modulation)
• Beta will require less bandwidth to increase the data rates, compared to
Alpha → easier growth
• Beta is more competitive in the market since its cost per Mbps is about
30% lower than Alpha’s
• With the high performance satellite used by Beta, additional low-cost sites
can be easily deployed with smaller antennas and less power.
33
• Alpha and Beta are competing Mobile Network Operators.
• They both need satellite connectivity to support their operations.
• However, they have a very different procurement approach.
Alpha Beta
1. Selects the satellite operator which has the 1. Designs the satellite network taking into
lowest price per MHz. consideration equipment and bandwidth
2. Then, buys the cheapest equipment requirements.
available on the market. 2. Performs a Total Cost of Ownership analysis
3. Doesn’t fully take into account future including CAPEX and OPEX.
requirements in terms of equipment, 3. Considers future requirements to select an
coverage and bandwidth. effective invest-as-you-grow solution.
4. Trains in-house satellite experts to keep
optimizing the network
34
What could be the consequences of the two different approaches?
• An initial “cheap” design may prove to be more expensive over time:
• Company Alpha may need to invest more than Beta to expand
the network
• With limitations of ground equipment, bandwidth-saving techniques can hardly be
implemented.
• Possible lower performance

• Service availability, satellite performance, technical support, … matter.
Always compare apples with apples!
35
• Example with Alpha and Beta’s respective services :
Alpha Beta
Information Rate 10 x 1 Mbps 10 x 1 Mbps
Efficiency 1.6 bps/Hz 2.8 bps/Hz
Required bandwidth 6.25 MHz 3.57 MHz
Price $/MHz 2,000 $/MHz* 2,500 $/MHz*
Bandwidth MRC 12,500 $/month 8,929 $/month
Equipment investment 100,000 $* 180,000 $*
Contract length 36 months 36 months
Total Cost of Ownership 550,000 $ 501,429 $
Equipment feature Entry-level modems, Advanced modems with Carrier Cancellation

Modcod 8PSK 3/4, Technique and ACM,
Roll-off factor 40% Modcod QPSK 7/8, Roll-off 25%
Satellite performance C-band global beam low EIRP C-band zone beam high EIRP
* Indicative figures
36
• In addition to saving more money despite a higher initial investment:
• Beta’s service reaches virtually 100% availability thanks to ACM (Adaptive
Coding and Modulation)
• Beta will require less bandwidth to increase the data rates, compared to
Alpha → easier growth
• Beta is more competitive in the market since its cost per Mbps is about
30% lower than Alpha’s
• With the high performance satellite used by Beta, additional low-cost sites
can be easily deployed with smaller antennas and less power.
37
Agenda
38
The Cost Structure of a Satellite Network
• As seen in the previous example, several parameters must be considered
• Equipment: The performance requirements can
• Antenna size significantly impact the network design
• BUC size thus the overall cost.
• Modem capabilities Define them sensibly and be ready for
• Network topology: tradeoffs!
• Star or Mesh
• Satellite bandwidth: The good design of a network will
• Performance of the satellite consider the investment and recurring
• Type of coverage: global, hemispheric, costs required to meet the requirements,
zone or spot beam while taking into consideration scalability.
• Dedicated or shared bandwidth
• Other: license fees, installation,
maintenance, international shipment, …
39
The Cost Structure of a Satellite Network
• A link budget report typically provides information that help assessing the cost of the solution
Required
Carrier Information Required Transponder Designed Link Availability
(depends on modem capabilities) Bandwidth Power (PEB)
Satellite and transponder

information
Antenna size and required BUC power
40
Agenda
41
Dedicated SCPC Links
• SCPC = Single Channel Per Carrier
• Typically used for point-to-point links with dedicated bandwidth
• Example of a network:
For 99.96% availability
• Hub to Remote 1: 2 Mbps
6.8 MHz are required
• Hub to Remote 2: 2 Mbps for the total network
• Remotes to Hub: 1 Mbps each
• All sites have a 2.4m antenna and entry-level
modems.
Efficiency is only 0.88 bps/Hz
42
Improving Efficiency with Better Equipment
• Same network as previously, but with different hardware configuration
Antenna sizes Modems Bandwidth Efficiency

Initial network 2.4m Entry-level 6.8 MHz 0.88 bps/Hz
Larger antennas 3.7m Entry-level 4.8 MHz 1.25 bps/Hz
Lower roll-off factor 3.7m Advanced 4.3 MHz 1.40 bps/Hz
Carrier Cancellation 3.7m Advanced with CCT 2.9 MHz 2.07 bps/Hz
Technique
• Now, if the requirements are modified a bit:
• Using Adaptive Coding and Modulation (ACM) and Carrier Cancellation Technique
• Maximum throughput 2 Mbps /1 Mbps (95% of the time)
• Minimum throughput 1.6 Mbps /0.94 Mbps
• Required bandwidth is 2.4 MHz and efficiency is 2.5 bps/Hz
43
Improving Efficiency with Better Equipment
• As seen in previous examples, using better equipment leads to
higher efficiencies thus lower recurring costs.
• However:
• Only a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis can determine whether the
investment on hardware is worth the bandwidth savings
• The size of the network, the required bandwidth and possible savings must
be taken into consideration.
44
Agenda
45
Not All Satellites Perform Equally
• The efficiency that can be achieved for a given satellite link also depends on the characteristics
of the satellite and transponder:
• Power density and G/T The cost/MHz will
typically vary in function
• Beam coverage:
of these parameters
• The wider the beam, the larger the service area can be, but …
• Wider beams (especially global beams) typically have lower power density
• Note that some satellite operators only have global C-band beams for services in Africa
• Elevation angle: preferably above 20 degrees

• Available capacity
• Intelsat’s EpicNG satellites represent a major step forward:
• High throughput, increased power density, flexibility, vendor-agnostic, etc.
46
What about Ka-band? 1/2
• Ka-band is more susceptible to rain attenuation
Legend:
Ka-band Link Margin required for
99.6% availability
> 18 dB
Ku-band
47
What about Ka-band? 2/2
• Most Ka-band spot beams are smaller than Ku-band beams: more beams required to cover an area
• In an attempt to cover the globe, some operators are stretching their beams, which reduces their power and efficiency
• A few myths on Ka-band:

• “Higher frequencies provide higher throughput”
Myth: There is nothing fundamental in a frequency band which supports higher throughput
• “Ka-band is more cost-effective because it allows us of smaller antennas”
Myth: Higher frequencies result in greater path loss between the antenna and the satellite, which nullifies
the increase in antenna performance. For similar link performance, larger Ka-band terminals are required
• “Attenuation mitigating techniques can compensate Ka-band rain fade”
Myth: There is a limit of how much rain fade ACM and UPC can address and these techniques are unlikely to be fully able to
compensate for Ka-band rain fade.
• “High Throughput Satellites (HTS) are Ka-band satellites”
Myth: An HTS satellite is one that uses significant frequency reuse techniques to multiply the effective throughput capacity of the
satellite. EpicNG HTS satellites use C-, Ku- and Ka-bands.
48
Sharing Resources for Better Cost Efficiency
• Dedicated SCPC links are well-suited to:
• Connections that need to be up all the time
• Traffic patterns that do not have dynamic variations
• Sharing resources:
• Satellite bandwidth
• Modulators and demodulators hub cards
• Solutions with shared resources are preferable when:

• Network is large with a central hub: avoid having multiple modems at hub
• Traffic demand is dynamic and varies within the network
49
Sharing Resources for Better Cost Efficiency
• Typical configuration:
• Central hub with one or several modulator and demodulator cards
• Remote sites equipped with modems and possibly DVB receivers
• Shared outbound carrier (from hub to remotes), typically DVB-S2
• Dedicated or shared inbound carriers (from remotes to hub):
• TDMA, MF-TDMA, dSCPC, Mx-DMA
• Most equipment manufacturers have such solutions:

• Comtech Heights, Newtec Dialog, iDirect Flex, Gilat SkyEdge, etc.
• Intelsat offers solutions based on Newtec and iDirect hub equipment
50
Satellite Brings Benefits to Your Business
• Satellite technology should not be seen as last resort. It offers:
• Unmatched reliability
• Very high availability
• Short service implementation time in remote areas
• Wide coverage
• Easy point-to-multipoint communications
• Good value for money with state-of-the-art technology
• Opportunities for growth in untapped rural markets
• And so much more …
51
Conclusion
• Do not focus solely on unit prices for satellite capacity
• Always ask:
• What is the satellite performance?
• What equipment takes full benefit of the satellite capacity?
• What network topology do I need for the service?
• What efficiency can I reach?
• What is the Total Cost of Ownership?
• What support can I get from the satellite operator?
• What revenues and benefits can I drive from this service?
52
Thank you
Questions
53

Satellite Network Design

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

You might also like

Satellite Network Design

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Satellite Network Design

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Satellite Network Design

• Satellite Economics – Beyond the Cost per MHz

• Satellite Economics – Beyond the Cost per MHz

… sufficient margins must be included to ensure link integrity …

• Satellite Economics – Beyond the Cost per MHz

Necessary Inputs to Determine Proper Solution

• Hub Antenna Size • % Usage on Average

• Hub-based shared mechanism (Statistical Multiplexing)

• “IP Packet Switching over an MCPC Carrier”

• Single Channel per Carrier (SCPC)

Dedicated bandwidth for each Each remote requires its own

Provides superior Quality of Expensive OPEX if each remote

Low Latency and Low Jitter SCPC modems typically more

Best transmission method for Fixed data rates on the inbound

Sharing of satellite bandwidth High Latency and Increased

Lower overall OPEX compared Demanding remotes can burden

Good for low data rate Fragmentation of packets. Less

Low cost remotes Expensive hub equipment

Large population of users All remotes must be designed

• Satellite Economics – Beyond the Cost per MHz

• Operating Expenses (OPEX)

Operations & Power

Transmission OPEX Spares/Support

• Capital Expenses (CAPEX) Capital

• Hardware Network Civil

• Hub platform costs can introduce barriers to entry

• Growth costs must also be considered

• Link budgets must account for Information Rate, not IP Rate

Mbps vs. MHz

Modulation …Service REVENUE based upon

An end user’s service level requirements and

Mbps vs. MHz Revenue and Cost Bases

Spectral Efficiency vs. Eb/No

Bandwidth vs. Power

• Allocated BW • Power Equivalent BW

Bandwidth vs. Power

Relative Bandwidth (%) – for same data rate

• What to look out for is

• Turbo Product Coding (TPC)

• Turbo Product Coding

• Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) Viterbi / RS

• Iteratively decoded block code

Relative Efficiency of Alternative Schemes

TDM / MF - SCPC TDM / MF-TDMA

• Hub Antenna Size – % Usage on Average

… only with this information can one

• Satellite Economics – Beyond the Cost per MHz

• Registration with local authorities

• Logistics around equipment shipping and installation

• Possible lower performance

Always compare apples with apples!

Information Rate 10 x 1 Mbps 10 x 1 Mbps

Efficiency 1.6 bps/Hz 2.8 bps/Hz

Required bandwidth 6.25 MHz 3.57 MHz

Price $/MHz 2,000 $/MHz* 2,500 $/MHz*

Bandwidth MRC 12,500 $/month 8,929 $/month

Equipment investment 100,000 $* 180,000 $*

Contract length 36 months 36 months