Patent ID: 11888576
Assignee: THALES
Field: Telecommunications (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC H | IPC H

Claim 8:
9. The multi-spot space communication system of claim 7, wherein the on-board multi-spot communication payload comprises N opposition matrices, each of the N opposition matrices comprising N input rows and a single output terminal, a first input row of the N input rows being a direct input row connected directly to an output of a first divider of N dividers, and each of the remaining N-1 input rows being a derived opposition row connected respectively to a corresponding one of the remaining N dividers at one output, wherein each derived opposition row comprises a different remotely controllable attenuator or phase shifter, wherein the at least one opposition matrix comprises a single output terminal connected to an input terminal of a frequency transposition converter, and wherein the at least one opposition matrix comprises a combiner with N combiner inputs and one combiner output, the combiner supplied at each of its N combiner inputs by a corresponding one of the N input rows, and the one combiner output connected to the single output terminal of the at least one opposition matrix,
and wherein the on-board multi-spot communication payload is configured to, after the telecommunications satellite has been launched and the N satellite access stations have been brought into service:
in a second step, select a first transmission source from N transmission sources, wherein the first transmission source corresponds to a first neighboring transmission spot of N neighboring transmission spots, the first neighboring transmission spot covering a first satellite access station of the N satellite access stations, the first satellite access station comprising a communication spectrum monitoring device, wherein the single output terminal of the opposition matrix is connected to the first transmission source and each of the remaining N transmission sources are disconnected from a corresponding repeater channel of the N repeater channels by suitably configuring the switches of the output selection ring connected between output terminals of the N repeater channels and the N transmission sources of the transmission antenna;
a third step, connect each unique reception source to the direct input row of the corresponding opposition matrix and disconnecting the N-1 remaining reception sources from the derived opposition input rows of the corresponding opposition matrix, wherein each unique reception source corresponds to a particular neighboring reception spot of N neighboring reception spots, each neighboring reception spot coverin g a corresponding satellite access station of the N satellite access stations;

in a fifth step, after a fourth step wherein the first satellite access station receives a multiplex of test signals and digitizes the multiplex of test signals into a useful acquisition signal, i, wherein the multiplex of test signals are transmitted by at least a portion of the N satellite access stations, received by the first reception source, and retransmitted by the first transmission source,
connect one of the N-1 remaining reception sources to a corresponding one of the derived opposition rows of the opposition matrix and disconnect the other N-1 remaining reception sources from the derived opposition rows of the opposition matrix, wherein the one of the N-1 remaining reception sources corresponds to the reception spot covering a third satellite access station of the N satellite access stations.