VSAT Technology

Fundamental
What is VSAT?
VSAT Defined

Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) is technology that

is commonly referred to as a private earth station. The
earth station is designed to transmit and receive data
signals via a satellite signal. VSAT includes the term
“very small” which refers to the size of the antenna on
the VSAT dish.
 Type of Station
1. Earth Station
2. Ground Station
3. HUB Station
4. Remote Station

Remote
HUB
Applications of VSAT network:
- Internet access: Facebook, youtube, establish VPN
connection …
- VoIP: phone call to PSTN, other remotes …
- Data Transfer: transfer data in order to collect
database from remotes
- Broadcast
- Video Conference
- Communicate between remotes each others
VSAT Topology
RF Fundamental
Frequency
Satellite Frequencies Range
Band Downlink Frequency (GHz) Uplink Frequency (GHz)

S Band 2.555 to 2.635 5.855 to 5.935

Extended C Band (Lower) 3.4 to 3.7 5.725 to 5.925

C band 3.7 to 4.2 5.925 to 6.425

Extended C Band (Upper) 4.5 to 4.8 6.425 to 7.075

Ku Band 10.9 to 12.75 14.0 to 14.5

Ka Band 17.7 to 21.20 27.5 to 31.00

Uplink frequency is grater than Downlink Frequency

VSAT Frequency Comparison
Ku Band C Band
Benefits Drawbacks Benefits Drawbacks
It allows the use Signals susceptible Signal less Needs slightly larger
Of smaller dishes to fading during susceptible to rain dishes when
rain. Attenuation fading compared to Ku
range from 6 to 10 Rain attenuation in Band.
dB. the range of 0.4 to 1
dB.
Higher Transponder Not available every Widely available Lower transponder
Power where in the world power
Narrower beam Wider and even
coverage global beam
coverage
Less terrestrial Higher likelihood of
interference terrestrial
interferenece
Digital satellite communications

• Somehow the digital data (binary 1001101110…) we want to transmit needs to be

converted in a physical signal

• In digital modulation, an analog carrier signal is modulated by a discrete signal

Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK)

0 1 0

Frequency Shift Keying (FSK)

0 1 0

Phase Shift Keying (PSK)

0 1 0
Digital satellite communications
QPSK = Quaternary Phase Shift Keying

A state is also called

amplitude
‘symbol’
phase
A symbol is
transmitted during
one ‘symbol period’
TS

The number of
symbols transmitted
per second is the
‘symbol rate’

QPSK transmits 2 bits

per symbol
Digital satellite communications
16APSK
16 symbols,
4 bits/symbol
8PSK
8 symbols,
3 bits/symbol

32APSK
32 symbols,
5 bits/symbol

APSK = Amplitude and Phase Shift Keying

Digital satellite communications
Forward error coding provides a means to identify and repair bit errors by
transmitting additional redundant bits

How does this work ?

For every k bits of user data n encoded bits are transmitted (n>k).

The ‘information’ of the k user bits is spread by the encoder over the n encoded bits.
Even if some bit errors occur, the decoder can still restore the original bits.

k bit input word n bit code word

encoder

The ratio n/k is called the ‘code rate’ or ‘FEC rate’

Formula

BW = Symbol Rate *FEC* ( Modulation factor for QPSK is is 2,8PSK it is 3 ,QAM it is

4) * Reed–Solomon error correction

BW = 11.4 * ¾ * 8PSK * 188/204 ( Considering FEC=3/4 and 8psk Modulation)

BW = Bandwidth (Mbps)
Symbol Rate = Mbaund or Msps DVB-S
FEC = Forward Error Correction (e.g 3/4 )
Modulation Factor = BPSK = 1 bit
DVB-S2 QPSK = 2 bit
BPSK = 1 bit 8PSK = 3 bit
QPSK = 2 bit 16QAM =4 bit
8PSK = 3 bit 32QAM = 5 bit
16APSK =4 bit 64QAM =6 bit
32APSK = 5 bit
64APSK =6 bit
Reed-Solomon error correction =188/204
Transponder
 Transponder
Internet

Remote Station
HUB Station

Forward
Return
Transponder
The Transponder (Transmitter-Responder) is the brain of the satellite that provide
connection between the satellite’s Receive and Transmit antennas.

A transponder bandwidth can be frequently be 36 MHz, 54 MHz , 72 Hz or can be even

wider.

Transponder function is
• Receive the signal
• Filter out noise
• Shift the frequency to downlink frequency
• Amplify for retransmission to ground
Vinasat 2
Satellite Name: Vinasat 2
Status: active
Position: 132° E (131.8° E)
NORAD: 38332
Cospar number: 2012-023B
Operator: Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications
Group (VNPT)
Launch date: 15-May-2012
Launch site: Guiana Space Center
Launch vehicle: Ariane 5 ECA
Launch mass (kg): 2970
Dry mass (kg):
Manufacturer: Lockheed Martin
Model (bus): A2100A
Orbit: GEO
Expected lifetime: 15 yrs.
Details:24 Ku-band transponders to provide radio,
television and telephone transmission services for
all of Vietnam and certain parts of the Asia Pacific
region
Asia Sat 4 Asia Sat 9
Satellite Name: Asiasat 4 Satellite Name: Asiasat 9
Status: moving Status: active
Position: 122° E (68.88° E) Position: 122° E (121.56° E)
NORAD: 27718 NORAD: 42942
Cospar number: 2003-014A Cospar number: 2017-057A
Operator: Asia Satellite Telecommunications Co. Ltd. Operator: Asia Satellite Telecommunications Co. Ltd.
Launch date: 12-Apr-2003 Launch date: 28-Sep-2017
Launch site: Cape Canaveral Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome
Launch vehicle: Atlas 3B (Atlas IIIB) Launch vehicle: Proton M
Launch mass (kg): 4137 Launch mass (kg): 6140
Dry mass (kg): 2275 Dry mass (kg):
Manufacturer: Boeing (Hughes) Manufacturer: Space Systems Loral (SSL)
Model (bus): HS-601HP Model (bus): LS-1300
Orbit: GEO Orbit: GEO
Expected lifetime: 15 yrs. Expected lifetime: 15 yrs
Call sign: Call sign:
Beacon(s): 4198.25H, 4199.25H Beacon(s): 4198.65, 4199.65 H or LHCP
Details: Details:
28 C-band, 16 Ku-band; extensive C-band coverage C, Ku, and Ka-band, transponders. It will be located at
across Asia and targeted Ku-band beams for 122 degrees East Longitude where it will replace
Australasia, East Asia, and a BSS payload for provision AsiaSat 4.
of Direct to Home (DTH) services to Hong Kong. Charts: list
Asiasat 9 Vinasat 2
Media (Connection)
Connector Types

F-Type (Male) F-Type (Female) N-Type (Male) N-Type (Female)

SMA-Type (Female)
SMA-Type (Male)
BNC-Type (Male) BNC-Type (Female)

Cable Tools

Cutter
Crimper
Cable Stripper
Troubleshooting Coaxial Cable
Remote Station
Type of VSAT Station

Fixed Station
Flyaway Station
Fixed Station (Remote) (Hub, Teleport , Uplink)

Mobile Station
Trailer Station (Tactical) Marine Station
(COTM, DSNG)
Antenna Types

Prime Focus Antenna Mobile Flyaway Antenna Phased Array Antenna

Offset Antenna Dual Reflector Antenna Auto Stabilized Antenna

 Orthomode transducer (OMT) is a waveguide
component.

NON-PENETRATING MOUNT
NPM
 Remote Site
IDU (Indoor Unit) ODU (Outdoor Unit)
Router

UTP Cable Antenna

Dish

Modem LNB

Rx Cable BUC

Tx Cable King Post

BUC (Block up Converter)
HPA Types

Indoor SSPA/SSPB BUC

Transceiver
Outdoor SSPA/SSPB
BUC (Block Up Converter)

 combines Up Converter and Power Amplifier modules

 BUC does frequency up conversion and power amplification of the input IF
signal.
 converts IF Input frequency of about 70MHz to 6GHz RF carrier frequency for C
band VSAT.
 BUC - Up Converter + Power Amplifier

C Band
Output 5.850 – 6.425 GHz
LO 4.90 GHz
5W
LNB (Low Noise Block)
LNA/LNB Types

LNB (Low Noise Block) LNA (Low Noise Amplifier)

LNB (Low Noise Block)

 combines LNA and Down Converter modules

 Low Noise Amplification and frequency down conversion of the input RF signal.
 converts RF Input frequency of about 3.7 GHz to 70 MHz IF carrier frequency for C band VSAT.
 LNB - LNA + Down converter

C Band
Input 3.625 – 4.2 GHz
LO 5.15 GHz
 Ext (10 MHz Reference)

Phase-locked loop
Waveguide
 Electromagnetic waves are carried from one point to the other by many means such as
coaxial cable, two wire line, optical fiber, microstrip lines, waveguide etc.
 waveguide is the hollow metallic conductor carrying usually high frequency or
microwave frequency.
 Operating range of waveguide is approx. from 300 MHz to 300 GHz
 It will support waves above a certain cut off frequency.
 Power loss occurs in the walls of waveguide due to induced current, in order to reduce
this loss walls are designed with as much low resistance as possible.

Waveguide types

rectangular circular
HUB Station
Forward Link (newtec) , Outbound (gilat)

Return Link (newtec), Inbound (gilat)

Forward Technologies

DVB-S DVB-S2

Multiple transport stream and generic

Input interface Single transport stream (TS)
stream encapsulation (GSE)

Variable coding & modulation and adaptive

Modes Constant coding & modulation
coding & modulation

Reed–Solomon (RS) 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, 5/6, LDPC + BCH 1/4, 1/3, 2/5, 1/2, 3/5, 2/3,
FEC
7/8 3/4, 4/5, 5/6, 8/9, 9/10

Modulation Single-carrier QPSK Single-carrier QPSK with multiple streams

Modulation
BPSK, QPSK, 8PSK, 16QAM BPSK, QPSK, 8PSK, 16APSK, 32APSK
schemes
Interleaving Bit-interleaving Bit-interleaving

Pilots N/A Pilot symbols

RETURN LINK
TECHNOLOGIES

GSE Encapsulation

Mx- MF-
Access
SCPC SCPC DMA TDM Technology
™ A
DVB- Coding & Modulation
HighResCodin 4CP
S2 S2 Technology
g™ HRC M
ext.
Cross-Dimensional Multiple Access (Mx-DMA)
ACM and CCM
Remote Installation
Remote check procedure

Purpose: Collect all informations about the remote site and decide whether
meet conditions or not before operation.

- Antenna position: need to determine where place antenna have sight toward
target satellite and the ground must be heavy and flat also.
- Distance from outdoor unit to indoor unit: need to determine how long is
the cable and calculate how much losing signal.
- Where is the indoor unit placed: is there meet temperature and humidity for
modem can work stable ?
- Does the antenna have test CPI yet ? And how much is the receive signal
level ?
- Speed of this remote site : test by Iperf or speedtest.net
- Stability of this remote ?
Remote Site Physical Installation

LNB
Rx_Cable

BUC

LAN_Cable Tx_Cable

Power
 Basic installation for a remote
Install antenna and pointing:
Based on site survey and information that we collected. We perform pointing antenna.
Note: we have basic knowledge about antenna
- Azimuth
- Elevation
- Polarization
- Install Antenna and connect LNB,BUC into antenna system
Pointing procedure:
- Step 1: Collect information about target satellite
- Step 2:Determine target Az,EL,POL angle by SatFinder.
- Step 3: Adjust Az, EL, POL to relative position
- Step 4: Adjust Az ± 5o until get the maximum signal
- Step 5: Adjust EL± 5o until get the maximum signal
- Step 6:Adjust POL until get the maximum signal (CW or CCW)
- Step 7: Repeat step 4-6 to reach maximum signal
Cross Pol Isolation Test (CPI)

» cross-polarisation (isolation) test - maximises signal on the correct pole and minimises
interference on the opposite pole of a cross-polarised service

1dB Compression Test

» 1-dB compression test - identifies the compression (saturation) point of a transmission
system, including the modem, BUC, and IFL cable

1dB Compression Test

Normally the NOC will also do a 1dB compression point test after doing the CPI. They will adjust
the CW carrier in 1dB steps up to the point where a 1db increase in modem power does not
correspond to a 1dB gain in output power due to the transmitter amplifier in the antenna (BUC)
going into saturation. The 1dB compression point is the modem Tx level where the BUC output
is 1dB below the linear theoretical output. This determines the maximum output of the modem
that the BUC can transmit.
 • C/No Carrier power divided by noise power
ADAPTIVE spectral density
RETURN LINK
• Es/No Energy per symbol divided by noise power
spectral density
• C/No – 10*log (symbol rate)
• Theory

• C/N Signal to noise ratio measured in allocated

bandwidth
• C/No -10*log (allocated bandwidth)
Definitions

• Allocated
bandwidth Carrier spacing

69 Newtec Proprietary – Company Confidential

 Internal 2GByte MicroSD card for mass Robust housing with optional
NEWTEC MDM3100 storage (future use) 19” rack mount kit

Status LED´s :
0 to 50 deg C Operational Temperature Power, Receive, Transmit, Alarm, Port Activity

DC Power Supply – 24V 4 Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports USB Port (future use)

Reset
Fan Interface (future use)
BUC Interface LNB Interface
950-1850 MHz 950-2150 MHz
10MHz Reference
24V DC, 3.5A Power 13/18V DC, 500mA

70 Newtec Proprietary – Unrestricted

NEWTEC MDM3300 satellite modem

VERSATILE SATELLITE
COMMUNICATION
• Throughput:
• 45 Mbps TCP receive
• 8 Mbps TCP transmit

• Forward DVB-S2 FlexACM®, Clean Channel Technology™

• Multiple Return Technologies, FlexACM®
• MF-TDMA - 4CPM
• SCPC – HRC® / SCPC – S2 Extensions
• MX-DMA® - HRC®

• 4 x GbE LAN
• Multi-language web GUI
• Offered with performing ODU-portfolio: C, Ku and Ka-band
 BUC and Modem Frequency Synchronized
• Extra ODU parameter for MDM3x00
• Indicates if BUC uses the 10MHz reference of the modem or
not.

BUC and Modem Frequency Synchronized checkbox must be set to an

equal value on hub and terminal side.
•If mismatch, then the terminal cannot log on to the network.

72 Newtec Proprietary – Unrestricted

Communications on the Move (COTM)
 • Broadcast
•MODEM GUI
Satellite
modem
•ANTENNA CONTROL
UNIT

•MDM3X00

• Antenna pointing info exchange via OpenAMIP compatible

protocol

• Enabled in Antenna Controlling submenu

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 • Broadcast
•MODEM GUI
Satellite
modem
•ANTENNA CONTROL
UNIT

•MDM3X00

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 • Broadcast
•MODEM GUI
Satellite
modem
•TEST

• In case of issues, self test can be launched to identify the problem

• Exportable to text file

76 Newtec Proprietary – Unrestricted

Terminal Configuration
Access to Modem GUI
Safety

RF Radiation