This document discusses satellite communication (SatCom) solutions for the oil and gas industry. It describes how SatCom supports the entire supply chain from exploration to distribution. Interference issues are also discussed along with solutions like monitoring systems, geolocation tools, and signal cancellation technologies to detect and mitigate different types of interference. Digital IF and RF over IP technologies are presented as ways to transport RF signals over IP networks, eliminating distance constraints between antennas and processing equipment. Case studies demonstrate how interference issues have been addressed and remote operations have been enabled through these solutions.
2. 21st Century SatCom Connectivity
Oil & Gas
Exploration
Production
Crude Pipelines
Shipping
Product Distribution
Product Pipelines
Trading
SatCom
Supporting the
Supply Chain
Refining
Storage Terminals
3. End-to-End SatCom Solution for the O&G Industry
VoIP1
E-mail2
Broadband Internet3
Corporate Training4
Secure Corporate Apps5
Remote Collaboration6
ATM/POS7
Monitoring & Surveillance8
Offshore GSM9
Tele-Medicine10
Maps & Weather11
Digital Video Content12
Needs
• Crew Welfare
• Reliability
• Security
• Performances
Constraints
• Bandwidth
• Costs
• Security
• Space
4. Global SatCom Network Architecture
Monics™ - RF Carrier System Monitoring1
satID™ - Interference Signal Geolocation2
SigX Protect™ - Signal Cancellation3
SpectralNet™ - RF over IP4
5. Types of Interference (1/2)
!
X
Y
!
!
Adjacent satellite
signal
Cross-Pol Interference – Accidental / very common
– Generally caused by: poorly aligned antennas in fixed or bursting networks;
and/or lack of training/experience of the uplink operators.
– Becoming more prevalent as installation margins are squeezed.
– Mitigation: monitoring, detection and geolocation tools, carrierID, training.
Adjacent Satellite Interference – Accidental / common
– Generally caused by: operator error, or poor inter-system coordination or
lack of installation expertise. Becoming more prevalent as two degree
spacing between satellites in the geostationary arc becomes more common.
– Mitigation: monitoring, detection and geolocation tools, carrierID,
Adjacent Carrier Interference – Accidental / minimum occurrence
– Generally caused by: operator error, or equipment failure (unlocked
equipment).
– Relatively infrequent
– Mitigation: monitoring, detection and geolocation tools, carrierID.
6. Types of Interference (2/2)
!
Unauthorized Access – Accidental & Deliberate
– Term given to a signal which is not resident as cross-pol or adjacent satellite
or carrier.
Deliberate: relatively rare
– Generally caused by: unauthorized use of bandwidth, piracy, and hostile
attempts to deny service. It’s becoming more prevalent though geopolitical
motivation.
– Mitigation: monitoring, detection and geolocation tools. While hostile
jamming is generally easy to locate, it is almost impossible to remove
without political intervention, which can prove difficult.
Accidental: very common
– Generally caused by: equipment failure, human error, improper
commissioning, and terrestrial interference from other microwave systems.
– Mitigation: monitoring, detection and geolocation tools, carrierID, training.
Unfortunately terrestrial systems often have priority and so becomes dead
capacity.
7. Ways to Detect Interference
Passive
Wait for the affected carrier to
alarm or report from the field
Compare spectrum plot of the
transponder with the nominal
frequency plan
Check for unauthorized carriers,
spurious emissions
Active
Continually scan signals and
transponders of interest, generate
alarms for out-of-tolerance
conditions
Analog Spectrum Analyzer
Digital Spectrum Analyzer
Pro-active; problem can be cleared
before it is noticed by the affected
customer
8. Monics™ - RF Carrier Management
Network Distributed Architecture1
Multiple Access Points/Multiple Users2
Windows Authentication3
Advanced Space Segment Filtering4
Carrier-Under-Carrier Analysis5
TDMA/FDMA Display6
Most advanced monitoring systems are
based on DSP technology
9. satID™ - Interference Geolocation
Integrated with Monics
Shares Common Hardware
Performs Interference Characterization
With Carrier Under Carrier Detection
Scaled Implementation
Cost Effective Solutions
Meet Specific Requirements
NOC/Distributed Acquisition Design
Accuracy – Speed – Ease of Use1
Graphical user interface for unparalleled
operational awareness and ease-of-use2
Result Averaging and Satellite Position
Correction for greater accuracy3
Working in any frequency band and
across multiple beams/continents4
11. Bias CorrectionPrimary
satID
Secondary
Inaccuracies in Satellite
positions and velocities2
Reference Propogation Effects3
Monitoring Station
measurement effects4
Target
?
Uncertainties in Satellite
translation frequencies1
12. KRATOS Geolocation Case Studies
Equipment Failure
• Failed transmission components on
antennas operating on the same
spacecraft can generate spurious
emission affecting other users.
Human Error
• Lack of training and lack of
discipline generates all of the human
induced interferences.
Deliberate Jamming
• Deliberate denial of service attacks
have been carrier out on a regular
base. Middle East and more recently
Ukraine are the main targets.
Geolocation should be the last tool in the SatOps Toolbox
Proven troubleshooting procedures allow most SatOps to detect, identify and
eliminate an interference within minutes or hours from the start of the
anomaly.
13. SigX Protect™ - Signal Cancellation
What is it?
• Where you can characterize and
cancel a signal with no prior
knowledge of the signal
Why is it important?
• Enables new applications
What applications?
• Signal protection (from RFI)
• Bandwidth Reuse
What is New?
Blind Signal
Separation
Mass marketed technology for
more than 10 years
1
Already successfully used by
satellite industry
2
14. KRATOS Signal Cancellation Case Studies
Unintentional Interferences
• By independently eliminating interference through signal separation and
cancellation within the communication chain, 90% of interference can be
addressed
Hardware Faults
• Signals can be protected from sweeping interference across the band
High Powered Interferer
• Signals can be protected even when the interferer is at a higher power
SCPC over TDMA
• Signal cancellation allows the time varying signals to pass through the
system, cleaned up of interference from a interference
The added benefits of Signal Separation is Bandwidth Optimization
Through characterization and blind separation of signals, extra power
available in the bandwidth can be utilized to increase effectiveness and
efficiency of leased bandwidth
15. SpectralNet™ - Limitation of RF Transport
RF
Cable
Fiber
Optic
Distribution
RF signals captured at an antenna can
only be transmitted over a short
distances before the signal degrades
<50 km
<0.5 km
Impact
Constrains ground system design
by requiring processing equipment
to be co-located with antennas
16. 10
11
-9
-7
13
6
…
What is Digital IF
Enables RF Spectrum to be captured, digitized and converted into IP packets
Sampled IF waveform
I/Q data from antenna /
downconverter
10
11
-9
-7
13
6
…
IP packets
ANSI/VITA 49.0Prefilter
VITA-49 Packets Converted
to RF Waveforms
IP packets
ANSI/VITA 49.0
10
11
-9
-7
13
6
…
10
11
-9
-7
13
6
…
Ability to Manage IP
Transport of VITA IP Packets1
Ability perform faithful RF
reconstruction after
transport
2
Interfacing to analog or
digital equipment3
Cost effective and deployable
technology4
Issues with Digital IF Adoption
17. Challenges of IP Transport
Router
Packets
Network Latency and Jitter Packet Loss
Bandwidth Costs
18. RF over IP Case Study
Today:
Equipment must located in close proximity to antennas due to IF signal attenuation
With RF over IP
The proximity constraints between antennas and processing equipment is eliminated
Direct A/D, D/A to IP packets
Central Site
SpectralNet
Appliance
SpectralNet
Appliance
Effectively Range limitation
1 km coax, 50 km RF fiber
Enabling:
WAN
Effectively NO Range limitation
Spectral Mon
Remote site
RF/IF IFL IF Switch
Modem Crypto
Gateway
Equipment Pooling
Reducing space and power
footprint
Centralized operations
Better use of personnel
1
3
2
4
