A Research Study on Protocol Stack of Space-Based Optical Backbone Network

Abstract

Facing the growing high data rate and large communication capacity demands, optical communications are widely recognized to be used to implement satellite communications. For a space-based optical backbone network, an appropriately designed protocol stack is important. In this paper, we propose a protocol stack that is suitable for a space-based optical backbone network. Following this, we then used software to simulate this stack, built a hardware platform to test it, and finally, analyzed the results. The results showed that the proposed protocol stack was well designed to provide efficient control and management of the space-based optical backbone network. It could improve management efficiency by collecting resources and automatically calculating and building route paths. It could also facilitate data forwarding in intermediate satellite nodes with limited source and power, by using an advanced orbiting systems (AOS) frame switching scheme to avoid unnecessary processes, such as unpacking, upper-layer processing and repacking for passing services. The protocol stack could also support the use of unidirectional links to improve the link resource utilization. Finally, it could also provide transparent transmission for different kinds of services.

Multi-Beam Satellite Seeking and Acquisition Method for Satcom-on-the-Move Array Antenna on a High Maneuverability Carrier

“…Satcom-on-the-Move (SOTM) refers to the installation of satellite signal antennas on moving carriers, which can control the direction of the antenna to align with the communication satellite in real-time during the movement of the SOTM carrier, thus achieving a stable transmission link between the satellite and SOTM [1][2][3][4]. With the development of technology, satellite communication is becoming increasingly widespread [5][6][7][8]. Currently, the application of array antennas in SOTM systems is a very important development direction [9][10][11].…”

Design and Implementation of Semi-Physical Platform for Label Based Frame Switching in Integrated Satellite Terrestrial Networks

“…On the other hand, free-space optics (FSO), which applies optical lasers to transmit data streams between two satellites, is becoming a substitute communications technology in satellite networks. As compared to microwave and other radio communications, FSO offers a higher frequency band, higher link capacity, lower power consumption, lower interference, and easier to identify interceptions or eavesdropping, and so FSO has been widely used in space-terrestrial broadband communications [1][2][3][4][5].…”