Patent ID: 6522635
Filing Date: 2003-02-18
Classification: H04B

Abstract:
In a mobile satellite system including a satellite communication switching office having a satellite antenna for receiving/transmitting a satellite message via a satellite from/to at least one data terminal of a plurality of data terminals using a mobile communication system, a satellite interface system, a management system including a central controller receiving/transmitting the satellite message from/to the satellite communication switching office, the central controller responsive to the satellite message received from the data terminal via the satellite, and receiving data in the satellite message received from the data terminal, a communication protocol method, comprising the steps of:(a) transmitting from the management system to the plurality of data terminals on a Time Division Multiplex (TDM) channel, the TDM channel including management system signaling, multiple management system messages, and management system acknowledgments; (b) transmitting from each data terminal to the management system on a respective signaling channel, the signaling channel including data terminal call requests, data reports, position reports or data terminal acknowledgments, and the management system receiving multiple signaling channels per TDM group or message channel; and (c) transmitting from the data terminal to the management system on a message channel, the message channel including multiple messages from the plurality of data terminals, the management system receiving the multiple messages per TDMA channel, and allocating message channel bandwidth for each of the multiple messages to the data terminal responsive to the data terminal call request received on one of the multiple signaling channels, wherein said step (a) of transmitting on the TDM channel includes concurrently transmitting multiple management system messages from the management system to the plurality of data terminals, wherein the TDM channel includes a plurality of frames, each frame including a plurality of data packets comprising at least a portion of one of the multiple management system messages from the plurality of data terminals, the plurality of data packets being included within the plurality of frames and arranged by sizes of the multiple management system messages and wherein the multiple management system messages including fewer packets have a higher transmission priority than the multiple management messages including more packets.