Satellite Communications IBEX 2011

1 KVH Industries, Communications ibex 2011 Installations and New TechnologiesIBEX Louisville, KY October 2011 KVH Industries, Trends Technology Properties of satellites and Satellite signals Factors affecting Satellite coverage Satellite TV services TV systems Home vs. marine DVB technology Installation Common issues to watch out for Basic VSAT installation KVH Industries, TRENDS KVH Industries, for the Marine Market Communications at sea changing dramatically Yachts 32 and larger need Communications systems for work, and as a means of receiving entertainment and news New services offer.

2 Global coverage Broadband speeds need for broadband is growing Voice over IP (VoIP) Affordable prices Communications requirements Small Cheap Light Global KVH Industries, Trends Bandwidth needs are increasing for yachting lifestyle Charter vessel needs Security Crew morale Inmarsat owns a large majority of MSS traffic Reliability Proven name Introduces new technologies Iridium True global coverage Most known for handheld phones and kbps data Offers faster Internet speeds with installed multi-antenna solution Globalstar Most known for handheld phones and kbps data Offers faster Internet speeds with installed multi-antenna solution SkyMate E-mail, weather.

3 Voice/fax services for recreational boaters VSAT business has seen tremendous growth Over 100 airtime operators/providers Various antenna manufacturers KVH Sea Tel, Orbit, KNS, Intellian 4 major platforms ViaSat / KVH (CRMA) idirect , Hughes HX, Gilat (TDMA) KVH Industries, VSAT Terminals/Segment KVH Industries, TechnologyUnderstanding the Basics KVH Industries, Is A Satellite ? A device in space that orbits (loops around) the earth TV, VSAT, and Inmarsat satellites are located over the equator at a set longitude Geosynchronous orbit Earth stations transmit TV signals to satellites Satellites rebroadcast the signals to fixed footprints on Earth Satellites broadcast over a certain frequency range KVH Industries, TVRO Band Designations C-Band at GHz Ku-Band at GHz Ka-Band at GHz Important general information about the different bands.

4 The lower the frequency, the larger the antenna The higher the frequency, the more weather will affect it It is common practice for the higher frequency antennas to go larger than normal to compensate for weather losses KVH Industries, of No. American Satellites KVH Industries, s Crowded Up There! KVH Industries, Footprints Coverage area of the beam called a Footprint Each Satellite service has its own unique footprint Coverage areas subject to change by service provider CONUS beam Covers the continental Spot beam Covers a small area of the country Used for local channels KVH Industries.

5 Isotropic Radiated Power EIRP Satellite transmits signals at certain power level to compensate for losses from atmosphere Transmitted on channels called transponders separated by frequency Power-level contours indicate locations of high and low power areas Fringe area of the beam = weakest signal Dish size of antenna determines minimum EIRP for good reception The lower an antenna s minimum EIRP, the greater its reception range KVH Industries, CONUS Footprint KVH Industries, of Sight Required Antenna must see the Satellite to receive its signals KVH Industries, affects SAT TV reception?

6 Blockage! Antenna must have clear view of TV Satellite Line-of-sight required Common causes of blockage: Buildings Masts, rigging Bridges Heavy rain, fog, etc. Higher Satellite elevation = Less blockage and weather affect KVH Industries, to DIRECTV 101W KVH Industries, Signal Polarization What is Polarization? Orientation of the signal Allows frequency overlap/reuse, increases capacity Circular Polarization Left Hand Circular Polarization (LHCP) LHCP (18V) = even transponders Right Hand Circular Polarization (RHCP) RHCP (13V) = odd transponders Linear Polarization Vertically or horizontally polarized Signals transmitted offset by 90 LNB must be adjusted ( skew ) to receive Sky Mexico (PAS 9) signals are linearly polarizedLeft-Hand CircularRight-HandCircularHorizontalLine arVerticalLinear KVH Industries, Signals ( Sky Mexico)

7 To receive linearly polarized signals, antenna must be equipped with a linear LNB (low noise block) LNB must be oriented in the same way as the Satellite signal This is called the LNB s skew Bad SkewGood SkewIdeal Skew KVH Industries, 9 Skew MapNote: Map shows approximate values only KVH Industries, Providers in No. America DIRECTV Continental coverage Standard-definition programming from Ku-band satellites at 101 W and 119 W High-definition (HD) programming from Ka-band satellites at 99 W and 103 W (requires TracVision HD7 antenna) DISH Network Continental coverage EchoStar Ku-band satellites DISH 500 programming from 119 W and 110 W TurboHD (DISH 1000) adds HD and local programming from either 129 W or 61 W Bell TV Formerly ExpressVu Canadian coverage Nimiq Ku-band satellites HD and standard programming from 91 W and 82 W KVH Industries, Info Web Sites.

8 KVH does not validate the information contained on third-party web sites, and their content is subject to change without notice. KVH Industries, Satellite TV System KVH Industries, System Reflector Reflects Satellite signal to Low Noise Block (LNB) LNB Collects the Satellite signal Converts signal from Ku/Ka to L-Band Amplifies the signal Sends signal down RF coax cable to receiver Receiver Decodes the Satellite signal Sends audio/video to the TV Supplies power to the LNB 2nd receiver needed to watch different channels on a 2nd TV KVH Industries, Satellite TV System KVH Industries.

9 Antennas Automatically searches the sky and finds the Satellite Using DVB technology Tracks the Satellite while vessel is in motion Tracks by RF signal strength Antenna housed in a protective dome LNB collects signals that bounce off reflector and splash plate, converts and amplifies the signals, and sends signals to the belowdecks receiver(s)Splash PlateReflectorFeed TubeLNB KVH Industries, Technology DVB = Digital Video Broadcasting Allows the antenna to automatically find the correct Satellite Antenna identifies a Satellite by its unique characteristics: Frequency Number of signal peaks that pass a fixed point in one second (MHz) Symbol rate Number of symbols (group of data bits) transmitted per second (Mbit/second) FEC code = Forward Error Correction Percentage of bits used for data and for correction of transmission errors ( 5/6 = 5 data bits transmitted for each error correcting bit) Network ID Identification code unique to each Satellite (hexadecimal)

10 KVH Industries, TECHNOLOGY KVH Industries, vs CRMA TDMA = Time Division Multiple Access Protocol used by traditional VSAT systems Time slots assigned to each vessel on the network, separated by timing gaps Imposes transmission delays and reduces the data rate experienced onboard Antenna must be large enough to focus its transmitted energy in a narrow beam that will not interfere with adjacent satellites CRMA = Code Reuse Multiple Access, spread-spectrum technology Protocol used in new mini-VSAT BroadbandSM Vessels transmit data immediately in bursts Reduces contention issues, transmission delays, and network slowdowns Return link transmissions are spread across a much wider frequency spectrum Low power transmissions don t interfere with neighboring satellites, allows wider beam and makes small dish size possible KVH Industries, TDMA Works KVH Industries, TDMA Works (cont d) KVH Industries, CRMA Works KVH Industries, CRMA Works (cont d)