Standardized testing conditions for satellite communications on-the-move (SOTM) terminals

Von Beginn an haben Satelliten Kommunikationsdienste über große Distanzen bereitgestellt. Endgeräte für die mobile Satellitenkommunikation sind mit einer Nachführeinrichtung ausgestattet, um den verwendeten Satelliten bei Bewegung zu verfolgen. Für höchstmöglichen Datendurchsatz und um Störaussendungen zu benachbarten Satelliten zu vermeiden bedarf es akkurater Nachführalgorithmen. Die Prüfung solcher Satcom-On-The-Move (SOTM) Terminals wird dabei zunehmend wichtig, wie Betreiber von Satellitendiensten anhand des negativen Einflusses suboptimaler Geräte auf ihre Infrastruktur bemerken. Herkömmlich werden SOTM-Terminals im Rahmen von Feldtests mit operativen Satelliten geprüft. Solche Tests sind allerdings nicht exakt wiederholbar. Die Reproduzierbarkeit von Tests ist jedoch insbesondere beim Vergleichstest mehrerer Terminals wichtig. Dieser Beitrag widmet sich der Untersuchung eines umfassenden Qualifikationstests von SOTM-Terminals innerhalb einer Laborumgebung, welche Reproduzierbarkeit ermöglicht. Wesentlicher Vorteil der Laborumgebung ist die Möglichkeit, Terminals unter realitätsnahen Bedingungen zu testen - ohne dass reale Satelliten benötigt werden, was die Kosten reduziert. Diese Arbeit behandelt darüber hinaus die Testmethodik in der Fraunhofer-Testanlage ”Facility for Over-the-air Research and Testing (FORTE)”. Wichtige Leistungsparameter wie Nachführgenauigkeit (Antenna De-pointing) und Nachbarsatellitenstörung (Adjacent Satellite Interference, ASI) können akkurat gemessen und ausgewertet werden. Die verwendete Methodik zur Gewinnung der vorgeschlagenen Profile wird in der Arbeit ebenso behandelt wie Testergebnisse von Ka-Band-SOTM Terminals. Wesentlicher Beitrag dieser Arbeit ist die Entwicklung von Bewegungs- und Abschattungsprofilen für SOTM-Terminaltests. Bewegungsprofilen für die Landmobile und Maritime Umgebungen wurden entwickelt. Für jede Umgebung, zwei Klassen wurden definiert, Klasse A mit Profile die hohe Bewegungsdynamik haben und Klasse B mit Profile die relativ niedrige Bewegungsdynamik haben. Die vorgeschlagenen Bewegungsprofile wurden in der GVF-105 Standard des Global VSAT Forums berücksichtigt. Die Standardisierung solcher Profile ist notwendig, um einen fairen Leistungsvergleich verschiedener Terminals zu garantieren und solche Geräte sicher zu identifizieren, welche Interferenzen im Satellitennetz verursachen. Dies bedeutet im Ergebnis einen Gewinn für die gesamte Satellitenindustrie.Satellites have proven their success in providing communication services especially between distant locations. For Satellite Communication On-The-Move (SOTM) applications, accurate satellite tracking algorithms must be applied in order to ensure the highest possible throughput and also to avoid harmful interference to adjacent satellites. Performance validation of SOTM terminals is becoming more important as the satellite operators recognize the negative influence of suboptimal terminals on their satellite networks. Traditionally, SOTM testing is performed with actual operational satellites in field tests, which lack repeatability. The capability to repeat the conditions in which SOTM terminals are tested is important, especially when the performance of multiple terminals is compared. This contribution is dedicated to study how to conduct a comprehensive qualification test of SOTM terminals in a laboratory environment so that repeatability can be ensured. A major advantage of a laboratory environment is the ability to test the complete terminal as if it was in the field of operation, yet without the involvement of real satellites effectively reducing the costs of testing. This thesis presents the methodology for testing SOTM terminals at the Fraunhofer Facility for Over-the-air Research and Testing (FORTE). Important performance parameters, such as, antenna de-pointing and Adjacent Satellite Interference (ASI) can be accurately measured and evaluated. The procedure used to obtain the proposed profiles and results of testing a Ka-band SOTM terminal are also presented in this thesis. A major contribution of this thesis is represented by the development of motion and shadowing profiles suitable for standardization of SOTM testing. Motion profiles for the land mobile and the maritime environment have been developed. For each environment two classes were defined, Class A with rough motion conditions and Class B with more relaxed motion conditions. The proposed motion profiles were added to the well-known GVF-105 standard recommendations of the Global VSAT Forum. Shadowing profiles were defined for land mobile applications in different environment types, e.g., urban, suburban, highway, etc. Standardization of such profiles is necessary to guarantee a fair comparison of the performance of different terminals and therefore leading to sort out the bad performing terminals which cause harmful interference to the existing satellite networks. This will lead to an overall improvement in the performance of the satellite industry

1-D broadside-radiating leaky-wave antenna based on a numerically synthesized impedance surface

A newly-developed deterministic numerical technique for the automated design of metasurface antennas is applied here for the first time to the design of a 1-D printed Leaky-Wave Antenna (LWA) for broadside radiation. The surface impedance synthesis process does not require any a priori knowledge on the impedance pattern, and starts from a mask constraint on the desired far-field and practical bounds on the unit cell impedance values. The designed reactance surface for broadside radiation exhibits a non conventional patterning; this highlights the merit of using an automated design process for a design well known to be challenging for analytical methods. The antenna is physically implemented with an array of metal strips with varying gap widths and simulation results show very good agreement with the predicted performance

Beam scanning by liquid-crystal biasing in a modified SIW structure

A fixed-frequency beam-scanning 1D antenna based on Liquid Crystals (LCs) is designed for application in 2D scanning with lateral alignment. The 2D array environment imposes full decoupling of adjacent 1D antennas, which often conflicts with the LC requirement of DC biasing: the proposed design accommodates both. The LC medium is placed inside a Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) modified to work as a Groove Gap Waveguide, with radiating slots etched on the upper broad wall, that radiates as a Leaky-Wave Antenna (LWA). This allows effective application of the DC bias voltage needed for tuning the LCs. At the same time, the RF field remains laterally confined, enabling the possibility to lay several antennas in parallel and achieve 2D beam scanning. The design is validated by simulation employing the actual properties of a commercial LC medium

Spatial and Temporal Sentiment Analysis of Twitter data

The public have used Twitter world wide for expressing opinions. This study focuses on spatio-temporal variation of georeferenced Tweets’ sentiment polarity, with a view to understanding how opinions evolve on Twitter over space and time and across communities of users. More specifically, the question this study tested is whether sentiment polarity on Twitter exhibits specific time-location patterns. The aim of the study is to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of georeferenced Twitter sentiment polarity within the area of 1 km buffer around the Curtin Bentley campus boundary in Perth, Western Australia. Tweets posted in campus were assigned into six spatial zones and four time zones. A sentiment analysis was then conducted for each zone using the sentiment analyser tool in the Starlight Visual Information System software. The Feature Manipulation Engine was employed to convert non-spatial files into spatial and temporal feature class. The spatial and temporal distribution of Twitter sentiment polarity patterns over space and time was mapped using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Some interesting results were identified. For example, the highest percentage of positive Tweets occurred in the social science area, while science and engineering and dormitory areas had the highest percentage of negative postings. The number of negative Tweets increases in the library and science and engineering areas as the end of the semester approaches, reaching a peak around an exam period, while the percentage of negative Tweets drops at the end of the semester in the entertainment and sport and dormitory area. This study will provide some insights into understanding students and staff ’s sentiment variation on Twitter, which could be useful for university teaching and learning management

European Handbook of Crowdsourced Geographic Information

"This book focuses on the study of the remarkable new source of geographic information that has become available in the form of user-generated content accessible over the Internet through mobile and Web applications. The exploitation, integration and application of these sources, termed volunteered geographic information (VGI) or crowdsourced geographic information (CGI), offer scientists an unprecedented opportunity to conduct research on a variety of topics at multiple scales and for diversified objectives. The Handbook is organized in five parts, addressing the fundamental questions: What motivates citizens to provide such information in the public domain, and what factors govern/predict its validity?What methods might be used to validate such information? Can VGI be framed within the larger domain of sensor networks, in which inert and static sensors are replaced or combined by intelligent and mobile humans equipped with sensing devices? What limitations are imposed on VGI by differential access to broadband Internet, mobile phones, and other communication technologies, and by concerns over privacy? How do VGI and crowdsourcing enable innovation applications to benefit human society? Chapters examine how crowdsourcing techniques and methods, and the VGI phenomenon, have motivated a multidisciplinary research community to identify both fields of applications and quality criteria depending on the use of VGI. Besides harvesting tools and storage of these data, research has paid remarkable attention to these information resources, in an age when information and participation is one of the most important drivers of development. The collection opens questions and points to new research directions in addition to the findings that each of the authors demonstrates. Despite rapid progress in VGI research, this Handbook also shows that there are technical, social, political and methodological challenges that require further studies and research.