ZEE 24 GHANTE

CHHATTISGARH
“Sawal apka hai”

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Zee News Ltd has launched an 24 hour satellite news channel in Chhattisgarh called
Zee 24 Ghante Chhattisgarh, which went on air on October 1. The channel officials
claim that it is a one stop platform for reporting and covering issues related to the
state and its people. The tagline for the channel is 'Sawal Aap Ka Hai' (It's a question
about you).
Zee 24 Ghante Chhattisgarh is a franchisee offering of Zee News, and has been
launched in association with SB Multimedia, a media company founded and
promoted by the Goel Group of Companies, a prominent business house in the
state. The channel is being run on a build-operate-transfer basis, with Zee News
sharing its brand name and functional expertise with SB Multimedia.
The different programs offer are based on news, spritual, entertainment
,sports,crime, stocks, astrology, education, information(i.e.law based and agriculture
based). Some programs are as followed bhramkumari, jai johar, sitare
hamare,hamar bani hamr goth ,aap ki baat, Desh Hamara, Khabar Chhattisgarh,
gunaah, tv tadka, filmy tashan, son kas bhuiya, City 36 and Nau Ki Baat,Hamar bani
hamar goth..,guide
Sports unlimited, Chhattisgarh dinbhar,rajdhani-nayadhani.talking stocks.

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 INTRODUCTION TO
SATELLITE COMMUNICATION
A satellite is something that goes around and around a larger something,
like the earth or another planet. Some satellites are natural, like the moon,
which is a natural satellite of the earth. Other satellites are made by
scientists and technologists to go around the earth and do certain jobs.

Satellite Communication using VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) since

the science fiction on radio transmission through space using geo-synchronous
earth satellite, provider has progressed significantly in the field of satellite
communications. The early earth stations were large and expensive. The reason
for the size and complexity of the early stations was not related to inadequate
performance. In fact, the antennas had very high efficiency and the noise
temperatures of their receivers were low. However, the satellites at that time had
a relatively poor performance providing considerably low RF (radio frequency)
power per transponder and a rather high noise temperature for the on-board
receivers. Additionally, satellites were then considered suitable only for very
long distance communication. Gradually, satellite communications have
appeared as regional systems requiring smaller coverage on the earth’s surface
enabling higher gain antennas. Subsequently, increase in transponder out-put
power, introduction of systems having several spot beams, development of
field-effect transistor amplifier for low noise receivers as well as its availability
as power amplifier have changed the satellite communication scenario. Once it
was possible to envisage an all solid-state transmit and receive earth station
even with a rather low power output, low price, large quantity, VSAT-based
earth station design could be conceived.

Type of satellite system

GEO, or Geostationary Earth Orbit

A satellite in geosynchronous orbit circles the earth in 24 hours—the same time
it takes the earth to rotate one time. If these satellites are positioned over the
equator and travel in the same direction as the earth rotates, they appear "fixed"
with respect to a given spot on earth— that is, they hang like
lanterns over the same spot on the earth all the time. Satellites in GEO orbit
22,282 miles above the earth. In this high orbit, GEO satellites are
always able to "see" the receiving stations below, and their signals can cover a
large part of the planet. Three GEO satellites can cover the globe, except for the
parts at the North and South poles.

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MEO, or Medium Earth Orbit
Satellites circling 6,000 to 12,000 miles above the earth are in medium altitude
orbit. In these larger orbits they stay in sight of a ground receiving
station for 2 hours or more, compared to about 10 minutes for LEOs. It takes
MEO satellites from 4 to 8 hours to go around the earth.

LEO, or Low Earth Orbit . A satellite in low earth orbit circles the earth 100
to 300 miles above the earth’s surface.Because it is close to the earth, it must
travel very fast to avoid being pulled out of orbit by gravity and crashing into
the earth.
Satellites in low earth orbit travel about 17,500 miles per hour. These satellites
can circle the whole earth in about an hour and a half.

Orbits of different satellites

OVERVIEW OF SATELLITE COMMUNICATION

Satellite Communication is a technology of data transmission whether

one-way data broadcasting or two-way interactive using radio frequency
as a medium.

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It consists of:
i. Space Segment or Satellite (e.g. Measat, Intelsat and Insat)

ii. Ground Segment or earth station which includes Antenna, Outdoor

Unit, Inter Facility Link, Indoor Unit and Customer Premises
Equipment.

Satellite communication provides services;

i. International Telephony – using Public Switched Telephone Network

(PSTN)
– Intermediate Data Rate (IDR)
– Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)

ii. Broadcasting
– TV Uplink
– Television Receive Only (TVRO)
– Digital Satellite News Gathering (DSNG)

iii. VSAT- Very Small Aperture Terminal

– Personal Earth Station (PES-TDMA)
– Telephony Earth Station (TES-TDMA)
– Domestic IDR/Single Channel Per Carrier (SCPC)
– VSAT Dialaway
– VSAT SkyStar Advantage
– VSAT Faraway

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 VSAT
(VERY SMALL APERTURE TERMINAL)

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VSAT (VERY SMALL APERTURE TERMINAL)

A Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT), is small earth station which is a

part of satellite communication. ground station or a stabilized maritime Vsat
antenna with a dish antenna that is smaller than 3 meters. Data rates typically
range from 56 Kbit/s up to 4 Mbit/s. VSATs access satellites in
geosynchronous orbit to relay data from small remote earth stations
(terminals) to other terminals (in mesh configurations) or master earth station
"hubs" (in star configurations).

VSATs are most commonly used to transmit narrowband data (point of sale
transactions such as credit card, polling or RFID data; or SCADA), or
broadband data (for the provision of Satellite Internet access to remote
locations, VoIP or video). VSATs are also used for transportable, on-the-move
(utilising phased array antennas) or mobile maritime communications

WHY VSAT networks are used:

i. Rapid, reliable satellite transmission of data, voice and video and an

ability to allocate resources (bandwidth and amplification power) to
different users over the coverage region as needed.

ii. VSAT industry is offering fixed network solutions that can provide a full
suite of services at reasonable price. eg: a toll quality voice channel via
VSAT is available between 3-15 cents/minute today.

iii. Easy to provide point-to-multipoint (broadcast), multipoint-to-point (data

collection), point-to-point communications and broadband multimedia
services.

iv. VSATs are serviced not only in cases where the land areas are difficult to
install, say in the case of remote locations, water areas, and large volumes
of air space.

v. An ability to have direct access to users and user premises.

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VSAT WORKS’ AT FOLLOWING RANGE OF FREQUENCIES:-

C-BAND
The C band is a name given to certain portions of the electromagnetic
spectrum, as well as a range of wavelengths of microwaves that are used for
long-distance radio telecommunications. The IEEE C-band - and its slight
variations - contains frequency ranges that are used for many satellite
communications transmissions; by some Wi-Fi devices; by some cordless
telephones; and by some weather radar systems. For satellite communications,
the microwave frequencies of the C-band perform better in comparison with Ku
band (11.2 GHz to 14.5 GHz) microwave frequencies, under adverse weather
conditions, which are used by another large set of communication satellites.[1]
The adverse weather conditions all have to do with moisture in the air, such as
during rainfalls, thunderstorms, sleet storms, and snowstorms.

EXTENDED C BAND

Extended C-Band Tx5.850–6.425, Rx 3.625–4.200

Ku-BAND
Communications satellites send and receive electromagnetic Ku-band signals,
which are in the super high-frequency range. Microwave phone signals, which
are relayed between tall towers, are in this same frequency range. However,
satellite Ku-band signals is usually not susceptible to interference from these
towers.

KA BAND
(Pronounced: "Kay-A Band") covers the frequencies of 26.5-40GHz[1]. The Ka
band is part of the K band of the microwave band of the electromagnetic
spectrum. This symbol refers to "K-above" — in other words, the band directly
above the K-band. The so-called 30/20 GHz band is used in communications
satellites, uplink in either the 27.5 GHz and 31 GHz bands[2], and high-
resolution, close-range targeting radars aboard military airplanes. Some
frequencies in this radio band are used for vehicle speed detection by law
enforcement

BAND TX FREQUENCY GHz RX FREQUENCY GHz

KU BAND 14-14.5 11.7-12.2
S BAND 1.7-2.5 3-3.5
EXTENDED C 5.850-6.425 3.625-4.200
C BAND 5.9-6.4 3.7-4.2
Table 1.RANGE OF FREQUENCIES

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ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGE OF USING C & KU BAND

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.[4] This is because the purpose of
the dish element of the antenna is to collect the incident waves over an area and focus them all onto the
antenna's actual receiving element, mounted in front of the dish (and pointed back towards its face); if the
waves are more intense, less of them need to be collected to achieve the same intensity at the receiving
element.

The Ku band also offers a user more flexibility. A smaller dish size and a Ku band system’s freedom from
terrestrial operations simplifies finding a suitable dish site. For the End users Kuband is generally cheaper
and enables smaller antennas (both because of the higher frequency and a more focused beam).[5] Ku band
is also less vulnerable to rain fade than the Kaband frequency spectrum.

The satellite operator's Earth Station antenna do require more accurate position control when operating at
Ku band than compared to C band. Position feedback accuracies are higher and the antenna may require a
closed loop control system to maintain position under wind loading of the dish surface.

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").[6] 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 compensate 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.

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 SPECIFICATION
VSAT is a term widely used in the satellite industry to describe an earth
station that is installed on the ground to receive communications from a
satellite or to communicate with other ground stations by transmitting to
and receiving from satellite spacecraft. The ground station may be used
only for reception, but is typically capable of both receiving and
transmitting. Major components of a VSAT are generally grouped in two
categories, ODU (outdoor unit) and IDU (indoor unit).

VSATFront View of VSAT IDU

Components

Outdoor
Unit
(ODU)

Indoor Unit
(IDU)

VSATFront
Front
ODU Viewof
View ofVSAT
VSATIDU
VSATSub-Components
Components IDU

Reflector
Feedhorn
OMT
LNB

SSPA (HPC)
Mount Bracket

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Out Door Unit

The ODU, so named because the components reside outdoors, includes;

the antenna (typically ranging in size from 3.8 meters down to as small as
0.6m in diameter), equipped with a feed system capable of receiving and
transmitting, a microwave radio, also known as a HPA High Power
Amplifier, and an LNA (low noise amplifier) used to convert the signal
gathered by the feed.

Frequency Bands are available for use in C, Ku, or Ka frequency bands

and are sold by wattage capability. A complicated calculation called a
"Link Budget" is performed by the satellite operator to determine both the
size of the antenna and how much power (wattage) will be required to
complete the transmission link between the ground station and the
satellite. Frequency Bands are sometimes combined with the LNA's
which are used as part of the receiving operation. The resulting
combination is called a "transceiver" and saves some integration time
during the installation process.

The ODU or antenna includes the dish, or reflector, and the feed arm,
which holds the active elements (transmitter and receiver). These are
pictured above

The Dish or Reflector

The older dish, shown on the left with the TV attachment, is made of
fiberglass, with an embedded wire mesh. It measures 0.74 meter in
surface area (39" x 23"). The newer Raven dish is still .74 meter, but is
rounder (34 1/4" x 28 1/2") and it is made of a lightweight metal. Often,
when only referring to the dish, without the feed arm, the term reflector is
used. The latest Prodelin dish was shown earlier.

The Feed Arm

Located on the fully assembled VSAT dish assembly, the Rx-Tx feed arm
is normally removed and safely stored, as part of the process for moving
to a new location. The feed arm consists of the feed support arm and the
outdoor electronics.

All of the active outdoor components connect to the support arm, which
also adds strength (and weight) to the completely assembled antenna. The
outdoor electronics consist of the LNB, which receives outroute (from the
NOC) Ku-band signals from the satellite, and the transmitter, which
transmits inbound (to the NOC) Ku-band signals to the satellite. Power is

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 supplied by the Hughes Net satellite modem. For those who are
interested, this is discussed in more detail, below.

LNB
The Low-Noise Block down-converter (LNB) is used to amplify and
frequency convert out route signals received by the antenna, for input into
the modem via the Sat-In cable.

The antenna receives the outbound signal in the Ku-band frequency, for
input to the wave guide end of the LNB. The LNB first amplifies the
input Ku-band signals. It then uses a local oscillator (LO), to frequency
translate input signals to L-band frequencies, which are used on the
coaxial cables.

The signal noise value is an electrical specification for the LNB, which is
critical to out route signal (your received signal) quality performance.
The lower the noise figure, the better the signal quality performance will
be.

The LNB is powered from the modem, via a DC power supply coupled
on the coaxial RF input connector, which connects to the receive IFL
cable.

(LNB)

Typical Universal LNB specifications are:

• Local Oscillator (LO): 9.75 GHz /10, 11.30 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

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• Frequency: 3.6-4.2 GHz
• Noise Figure (NF): 15 to 100 Kelvin’s (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 separation’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

Block Diagram Of Lnb

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.

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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 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.

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 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
hreaded 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.

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BLOCK UP CONVERTER (BUC)

BUC

A block up converter is used in the transmission of satellite signals.it converts a

band or block of frequencies from a lower frequency to a higher frequency.

Modern buc converts from l-band to ku-band and c band and ka band.

Buc’s are generally used in conjuction with the lnb’s.

The buc being an up converting device

The buc is assembled with lnb in associated with omt i.e. orthogonal mode
transducer to the feed horn that faces the the parabolic dish reflector.

The transmitter is used to frequency translate and power amplify inroute signals
from the modem and output them to the antenna, for transmission to the
satellite.

The modem sends the inroute signal at an L-band frequency to the transmitter,
using Sat-Out and the transmit coaxial cable. This signal is input to the
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transmitter, where it is frequency converted to the transmit Ku-band frequency,
using a nominally fixed local oscillator (LO). This Ku-band signal is then power
amplified to operate the transmitter at a nominal one-watt output power (at
saturation). The fixed output power is input to the antenna, for transmission to
the satellite.

The transmitter is powered from the modem, via a DC power supply coupled on
the coaxial RF output connector, which connects to the transmit IFL cable

Buc mounted at antenna

Functional block diagram of BUC

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Internal protection

Internal protection against high temperature and short or open circuit RF output
is standard. As well, input voltage detection ensures reliable shutdown and
restart under brownout or blackout conditions.

External protection

The VSAT transceiver is completely protected from the elements without

external user controls. The VSAT BUC modules are fully sealed and pressure
tested to 34 kPa (5 psi). Particle and moisture penetration is rated to IP68. High
quality powder coat paint is used to protect the modules from corrosion.

IDU Indoor Unit

The indoor unit is typically composed of a single unit called a modem. A

satellite modem is different than a telephone modem, and is used to convert
the data, video, or voice generated by the customer application for
transmission over satellite. The modem takes the signals from your computer,
phone or other device and changes them so they can be sent to the ODU
which transmits them out to the satellite and eventually to other ground
stations.

ENCODER

Page 18 of 40
INTEGRATED RECEIVER DECODER (IRD)

An integrated receiver/decoder (IRD) is an electronic device used to

pick-up a radio-frequency signal and convert digital information
transmitted in it
Consumer IRDs

Consumer IRDs commonly called a set-top box are used by end users and are
much cheaper compared to professional IRDs. To curb content piracy, they also
lack many features and interfaces found in professional IRDs such as outputting
uncompressed SDI video or ASI transport stream dumps. They are also
designed to be more aesthetically pleasing.

Professional IRDs

Commonly found in radio, television, Cable and satellite broadcasting facilities,

the IRD is generally used for the reception of contribution feeds that are
intended for re-broadcasting. The IRD is the interface between a receiving
satellite dish or Telco networks and a broadcasting facility video/audio
infrastructure.

Professional IRDs have various features that consumer IRDs lack such as:

• SDI outputs.
• ASI inputs / outputs.
• AES/EBU Audio decoding.
• VBI reinsertion.
• WSS data and pass through.
• Transport stream demultiplexing.
• Genlock input.
• Frame synchronization of digital video output to analogue input.
• Closed captions and VITS/ITS/VITC Insertion.
• Video test pattern generator.
• Remote management over LAN/WAN.
• GPI interface - For sending external alarm triggers.
• Rack mountable.

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 VSAT TOPOLOGY
Star

The hub station controls and monitors can communicate with a large
number of dispersed VSATs. Generally, the Data Terminal Equipment
and 3 hub antenna is in the range of 6-11m in diameter. Since all VSATs
communicate with the central hub station only, this network is more
suitable for centralized data applications.

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Mesh

A group of VSATs communicate directly with any other VSAT in the

network without going through a central hub. A hub station in a mesh
network performs only the monitoring and control functions. These
networks are more suitable for telephony applications.

Hybrid Network
In practice usually using hybrid networks, where a part of the network
operates on a star topology while some sites operate on a mesh topology,
thereby accruing benefits of both topologies

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 VSAT TECHNOLOGY
Multiple Accessing Schemes

The primary objective of the VSAT networks is to maximize the use of

common satellite and other resources amongst all VSAT sites. The
methods by which these networks optimize the use of satellite capacity,
and spectrum utilization in a flexible and cost-effective manner are
referred to as satellite access schemes. Each of the above topologies is
associated with an appropriate satellite access scheme. Good network
efficiency depends very much on the multiple accessing schemes. There
are many different access techniques tailored to match customer
applications. Access techniques including stream, transaction reservation,
slotted Aloha and hybrid mechanisms are used and are configurable on a
per-port basis, enabling customers to run multiple applications
simultaneously. Voice of 5.6 kbit/s Hughes-proprietary CELP
compression as well as voice of 8/16 kbit/s ADPCM compression
schemes, synchronous data of 1.2 to 64 kbit/s, asynchronous data of up to
19.2 kbit/s and G3 fax relay are some of the applications.

The satellite links are often referred to as long fat pipes – they represent
paths with high bandwidth-delay product. Moreover, since they typically
provide a broadcast channel, media sharing methods are needed at the
MAC sublayer of the data link control layer. The traditional CSMA/CD
schemes typically used in LANs can not be used with satellite channels
since it is not possible for earth stations to do carrier sense on the up-link
due to the point-to-point nature of the link. A carrier-sense at the
downlink informs the earth stations about potential collisions that may
have occurred 270 ms ago (for GEO). Such delays are not practical for
implementing CSMA/CD protocols. Most satellite MAC schemes usually
assign dedicated channels in time and/or frequency for each user. This is
due to the fact that the delay associated in detecting and resolving
multiple collisions on a satellite link is usually unacceptable for most
applications.

The VSAT services are primarily based on one of two technologies:

i. Single-carrier per channel (SCPC) and
ii. Time-division multiple access (TDMA).

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SCPC (Single-Carrier Per Channel)

SCPC-based design provides a point-to-point technology, making it the

VSAT equivalent to conventional leased lines.

TDMA (Time-division multiple access)

With TDMA networks, numerous remote sites communicate with one

central hub – a design that is similar to packet-switched networks. As a
leased-line equivalent, SCPC can deliver dedicated bandwidth of up to 2
Mbit/s. Remote sites in a TDMA network compete with one another for
access to the central hub, restricting the maximum band-.4 – DE width in
most cases to 19.2 kbit/s. Almost all international VSAT services in Asia-
Pacific are based on SCPC. Most domestic offerings are based on
TDMA, although some domestic operators offer point-to-point SCPC
links as well. Here, we will discuss briefly TDMA, pre-assigned or
demand-assigned FDMA, CDMA and other accessing techniques
featuring merits and demerits of these schemes.

In a TDMA network, all VSATs share satellite resource on a time-slot

basis. Remote VSATs use TDMA channels or inroutes for
communicating with the hub. There could be several inroutes associated
with one outroute. Several VSATs share one inroute hence sharing the
bandwidth. Typical inroutes operate at 64 or 128 Kbit/s. Generally
systems with star topology use a TDMA transmission technique. Critical
to all TDMA schemes is the function of clock synchronization what is
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performed by the TDMA hub or master earth station. The VSATs may
also access the inroute on a fixed assigned TDMA mode, wherein each
VSAT is allocated a specific time slot or slots.

FDMA (Frequency Division Multiple Access)

It is the oldest and still one of the most common methods for channel
allocation. In this scheme, the available satellite channel bandwidth is
broken into frequency bands for different earth stations. This means that
guard bands are needed to provide separation between the bands. Also,
the earth stations must be carefully power-controlled to prevent the
microwave power spilling into the bands for the other channels. Here, all
VSATs share the satellite resource on the frequency domain only.
Typically implemented in a mesh or single satellite hop topology, FDMA
has the following variants:

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i. PAMA (Pre-Assigned Multiple Acceess)

It implies that the VSATs are pre-allocated a designated frequency.

Equivalent of the terrestrial leased line solutions, PAMA solutions
use the satellite resources constantly. Consequently, there is no
call-up delay what makes them most suited for interactive data
applications or high traffic volumes. As such, PAMA connects
high data traffic sites within an organization.

SCPC (Single Channel Per Carrier) refers to the usage of a single

satellite carrier for carrying a single channel of user traffic. The
frequency is allocated on a pre-assigned basis in case of SCPC
VSAT which is also synonymously known as PAMA VSAT.

ii. DAMA (Demand Assigned Multiple Access)

The network uses a pool of satellite channels, which are available

for use by any station in that network. On demand, a pair of
available channels is assigned so that a call can be established.
Once the call is completed, the channels are returned to the pool for
an assignment to another call. Since the satellite resource is used
only in pro-portion to the active circuits and their holding times,
this is ideally suited for voice traffic and data traffic in batch mode.
DAMA offers point-to-point voice, fax, and data requirements and
supports video-conferencing. The ability to use on-board signal
processing and multiple spot beams will enable future satellites to
reuse the frequencies many times more than today’s’ system. In
general, channel allocation may be static or dynamic, with the
latter becoming. DE – 5 increasingly popular. DAMA systems
allow the number of channels at any time be less than the number
of potential users. Satellite connections are established and dropped
only when traffic demands them.

iii. CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access)

Under this, a central network monitoring system allocates a unique
code to each of the VSATs enabling multiple VSATs to transmit
simultaneously and share a common frequency band. The data
signal is combined with a high bit rate code signal which is
independent of the data. Reception at the end of the link is
accomplished by mixing the incoming composite data/code signal
with a locally generated and correctly synchronized replica of the

Page 25 of 40
 code. Since this network requires that the central network
management system co-ordinates code management and clock
synchronization of all remote VSATs, star topology is, by default,
the best one. Although this is best applicable for very large
networks with low data requirements, there are practical
restrictions in the use of spread spectrum. It is employed mainly for
interference rejection or for security reasons in military systems.

TDMA
Time-
division
Multiple
Access

VSAT
TECHNOL-
0GY

SCPC FDMA
Single- Frequency PAMA
carrier Division
per Multiple
Channel Access

FDMA

DAMA CDMA

VSAT Accessing Schemes

Page 26 of 40
 HOW VSAT WORK
i. The size of a VSAT antenna varies. The feed-horn directs the
transmitted power towards the antenna dish or collects the received
power from it.

ii. It consists of an array of microwave passive components. Antenna size

is used to describe the ability of the antenna to amplify the signal
strength.

iii. The Radio Frequency Terminal (RFT) is mounted on the antenna

frame and interconnected to the feed-horn (outdoor electronics)
includes Low Noise Amplifiers (LNA) and down-converters for
amplification and down conversion of the received signal respectively.

iv. LNAs are designed to minimize the noise added to the signal during
this first stage of the converter as the noise performance of this stage
determines the overall noise performance of the converter unit. The
noise temperature is the parameter used to describe the performance of
an LNA.

v. Up- converters and High Powered Amplifiers (HPA) are also part of
the RFT and are used for up converting and amplifying the signal
before transmitting to the feed-horn. The Up/Down converters convert
frequencies between intermediate frequency (IF level 70 MHz) and
radio frequency.

vi. Extended C band, the down converter receives the signal at 4.500 to
4.800 GHz and the up converter converts it to 6.725 to 7.025 GHz.
The HPA ratings for VSATs range between 1 to 40 watts.

vii. The outdoor unit (ODU) is connected through a low-loss coaxial

cable to the indoor unit (IDU). The typical limit of an (Interfacility
Link) IFL cable is about 300 feet. The IDU consists of modulators that
superimpose the user traffic signal on a carrier signal. This is then sent
to the RFT for up conversion, amplification and transmission.

Page 27 of 40
Fig:-Working of VSAT ( hpa-high power amplifier, cpe-customer
premises equipment, lna-low noise amplifier, pstn-public switched
telephone network)

Page 28 of 40
 VSAT NETWORK CHARACTERISTICS
Modern satellites are often equipped with multiple transponders. The area of the
earth’s surface covered by a satellite’s transmission beam is referred to as the
“footprint” of the satellite transponders. The up-link is a highly directional,
point-to-point link using a high-gain dish antenna at the ground station. The
down-link can have a large footprint providing coverage for a substantial area or
a “spot beam” can be used to focus high power on a small region thus requiring
cheaper and smaller ground stations. Moreover, some satellites can dynamically
redirect their beams and thus change their coverage area. The received
microwave power involved in satellite links is typically very small (of the order
of 100 picowatts). This means that specially designed earth stations that keep
carrier-to-noise ratio to a minimum are used to transmit/receive satellite
communications. The front-end receiver is the most crucial part of a transceiver
and contributes to the overall cost of the satellite earth station in a significant
way. Here, we describe some of the characteristics of a VSAT network:

Flexibility

The VSAT networks offer enormous expansion capabilities; it factors in

changes in the business environment and traffic loads that can be easily
accommodated on a technology migration path. There are limitations
faced by terrestrial lines in reaching remote and other difficult locations.
On the other hand, VSATs offer unrestricted and unlimited reach.
Additional VSATs can be rapidly installed to support the network
expansion to any site, no matter however remote.

Network Management

Network monitoring and control of the entire VSAT network is much

simpler than a network of leased lines, involving multiple carriers at
multiple locations. A much smaller number of elements need to be
monitored in case of a VSAT network and also the number of vendors
and carriers involved in between any two user terminals in a VSAT
network is typically one. This results in a single point of contact for
resolving all your VSAT networking issues. A VSAT network
management system easily integrates end-to-end monitoring and
configuration control for all network subsystems.

Page 29 of 40
Reliability

A single-point contact for operation, maintenance, rapid fault isolation

and trouble-shooting makes things very simple for a client, using VSAT
services. VSATs also enjoy a low mean-time to repair (MTTR) of a few
hours, which extends up to a few days in the case of leased lines.
Essentially, lesser elements imply lower MTTR. Uptime of up to 99.5
percent is achievable on a VSAT network. This is significantly higher
than the typical leased line uptime of approximately 80-85%.

Cost

A comparison of costs between a VSAT network and a leased line

network shows that a VSAT network offers significant savings over 2-3
years timeframe. This does not take into account the cost of downtime,
inclusion of which would result in the VSAT network being much more
cost-effective. Pay-by-mile concept in case of leased line sends the cost
spiraling upwards. More, so if the locations to be linked are dispersed all
over the country. In case of VSATs, the service charges depend on the
bandwidth which is allocated to the network in line with customer
requirements. With a leased line, a dedicated circuit in multiples of 64
kbit/s is available whether the customer needs that amount of bandwidth
or not.

Link Budgets

It ascertains that the RF equipment would cater to the requirements of the

network topology and satellite modems in use. The link Budget estimates
the ground station and satellite EIRP required. Equivalent isotropically
radiated power (EIRP) is the power transmitted from a transmitting
object. Satellite ERP can be defined as the sum of output power from the
satellite’s amplifier, satellite antenna gain and losses. Calculations of
signal levels through the system (from originatin earth station to satellite
to receiving earth station) to ensure the quality of service should normally
be done prior to the establishment of a satellite link. This calculation of
the link budget highlights the various aspects. Apart from the known
losses due to various cables and inter-connecting devices, it is advisable
to keep sufficient link margin for various extraneous noise which may
effect the performance. It is also a safeguard to meet eventualities of
signal attenuation due to rain/snow. As mentioned earlier a satellite
provides two resources, bandwidth and amplification power.

Page 30 of 40
 APPLICATION OF VSAT
Typical customer applications of VSATs include:

Supermarket shops (tills, ATM machines, stock sale updates and stock
ordering).
Chemist shops - Shoppers Drug Mart - Pharmaprix.
Broadband direct to the home. e.g. Downloading MP3 audio to audio players.
Broadband direct small business, office etc, sharing local use with many PCs.
Internet access from on board ship Cruise ships with internet cafes, commercial
shipping communications.
Garages / vehicle sales / petrol stations / motor spares (tills, ATM machines,
stock sale updates and stock ordering).
Hotel chains, hotel internet cafes.
Insurance offices, quotations access to head office computers, VPN.
Car rental offices, ATM machines.
Airlines, travel agents, booking systems.
Airport air traffic control, flight data.
Financial institutions - Banks, ATM machines.
Lottery terminals.
Manufacturers - sales offices, service divisions, plants.
Job centres.
Customs and tax offices / border passport control checkpoints.
Internet Service Providers. POP, VoIP, Cafe.
Phone booths, VoIP, SCPC.
Data file and software distributors.
Pipeline monitoring, well heads, oil rigs.
Rural telephony, data, videophone.
Schools.
Military, data transfer, voice, temporary fixed and mobile VSAT.
Environmental monitoring, weather stations, seismic monitoring.

Mobile phone base station in remote locations or on board ship.

VSAT is an expensive means of communications and should not be used if

terrestrial alternatives are available. The terrestrial method (cable modem ,
ADSL phone line) should be much cheaper

Page 31 of 40
ZEE 24 GHANTE CHHATTISGARH
STRUCTURE

S CAMERA
T
U
D
I
O
GRAPHICS NEWS ROOM

PCR(PANEL MCR(MASTER
CONTROL ROOM)
CONTROL
(PROMOS AND ADS’)
ROOM)

CAR V TECHNICAL
ROOM, S
SERVER. A
T
IT

EDITING
LIBRARY

Page 32 of 40
Page 33 of 40
 OFC NOIDA ON AIR

(BHARATI AND
VSNL LINK)

RAIPUR REGION

ENCODER SWITCH MUX

Connected to ISP
switch via Rj45 RAIPUR

MONITOR

ISP NOIDA
A1 A2 V
SSQSQSQ

DECODER
MUX
SWITCH

COMPRESSOR Teleport
MPEG2

A1 A2 V

ZEE NEWS CHANNEL TRANSMISSION

Page 34 of 40
 LNB

A1 A2 V DEODER
VTR

A1 A2 SERVER
V
VTR
ENCODER

BUC

Rx
Raipur

Tx
Bilaspur

COMMUNICATION BETWEEN TWO

COMMUNICATIONBUREAUS’
BETWEEN TWO BUREAUS’

Page 35 of 40
 DSNG(OB VAN)
(DIGITAL SATELLITE NEWS GATHERING)

Eng became a catch-all term for various elements of the electronic news
gathering process, including the use of point-to-point terrestrial
microwave signals to backhaul the remote signal to the studio. In modern news
operations, however, it also includes sng (satellite news gathering) and dsng
(digital satellite news gathering). Eng field operations are usually done with a
specially modified truck or van. Terrestrial microwave vehicles can usually be
identified by their masts which can be extended up to 50 feet (15 m) in the air
(to allow line-of-sight with the station's receiver antennas), while satellite trucks
normally use a dish that points skywards towards one of
the geostationary communications satellites. New phased array satellite
antennas are, as of 2010, being adapted from military and aircraft applications
for news gathering by networks and local stations. These systems will allow
broadcast live from moving vehicles.

The interior of DSNG, satellite trucks and microwave vans resemble small
control rooms on wheels. With digital evolution, bulky tape editing systems are
being replaced with single computers using multiple monitors or the computer's
screen. An edit suite, which used to weigh over one hundred pounds, can now
be replaced by a laptop computer. This is made possible by the fact that digital
video is easier to transport (inside and outside an edit system), because it takes
less bandwidth. There are many other qualities available through digital video
that were previously unavailable or only through systems costing hundreds of
thousands of dollars. In its essence, digital video allows the manipulation of
video scenes more easily because all of the scene is translated into computer
language, thus making it accessible to the computer instead of a fixed video
frame.

The DSNG system consists of programme video and two audio channels,
digitally multiplexed and compressed together via the encoder.

Page 36 of 40
 DSNG

The vision signal from the camera is fed via an optical fibre to the vehicle,
along with associated programme audio and comms. This fibre-optic “cable”
can also carry return video and comms signals from the vehicle to the camera
position. The video and programme audio is then fed to the coder (see Fig. 2)
and sent as a serial data stream to modulator. From here, it is modulated as a 3/4
FEC QPSK signal with overhead framing information, in accordance with Insat
IDR specification IESS 308 [3], and this signal is then fed to two stages of up
conversion

DSNG Internal block diagram

Page 37 of 40
 INTERNAL CABLING OF DSNG VAN OF ZEE NEWS CHHATTISGARH

CAMERA VDA
L R

MIXER
VTR
ADA A
E C
VTR OUTPUT N U
C
CAMERA O
OUTPUT
D C
E O
R N
T
R
O
M L
O B
U L
N E
I C
R
T
O
R
ON AIR
DISH ANTENNA

IRD OUTPUT
Gps System

IRD

Page 38 of 40
CONCLUSION
The network of VSATs at different locations adopts different topologies
depending on the end applications traffic flow Requirements. These topologies
could be star, mesh or hybrid networks.

The primary objective of the VSAT networks is to maximize the use of

common satellite and other resources amongst all VSAT sites. The methods by
which these networks optimize the use of satellite capacity, and spectrum
utilization in a flexible and cost-effective manner are referred to as satellite
access schemes. Each topology in VSAT is associated with an appropriate
satellite access scheme. Good network efficiency depends very much on the
multiple accessing schemes. There are many different access techniques tailored
to match customer applications.

The evolution in satellite communication will be affected to VSAT services.

Satellite technology improvements give longer life, greater flexibility, higher

performance and higher reliability overall and new on-board technology
implementations. While in the ground station developments for improving
satellite access technologies will make lower space segment utilization and
lower operational costs. The smaller and highly integrated terminals provide
more opportunity for mass deployment. Volume production and lower costs
will make satellite alternative for multimedia services

Page 39 of 40
References

1. http://www.marketinfo4me.com/Satellite%20Evolution%202003/
Section_1/s1_Binariang. htm, Binariang Satellite System – Measat, Satellite
Evolution Asia, 2003

2. Presentation on Telekom Malaysia, Satellite Network, August 2001

3. REPORT ON E-CLASSROOM (SCOPIA),

From Science College, Raipur (C.G.).

Page 40 of 40