December 2017

Global Military Communications Magazine

December 2017

Front cover photo courtesy of AeroVironment

www.globalmilitarycommunications.com | December 2017

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Editor Amy Saunders [email protected] Sales Christopher Ayres [email protected] Sales Sam Baird [email protected] Circulation Manager Elizabeth George Production [email protected] Editorial Director Richard Hooper [email protected] Managing Director David Shortland [email protected]

AeroVironment's RQ-11B Raven Small Unmanned Aircraft System

Contents News review

4/5/16

Border security: An American focus

No par t of this publication may be transmitted, reproduced or electronically stored without the written permission from the publisher. DS Air Publications does not give any warranty as to the content of the material appearing in the magazine, its accuracy, timeliness or fitness for any particular purpose. DS Air Publications disclaims all responsibility for any damages or losses in the use and dissemination of the information.

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Q&A Chris Mason, VP of Sales for EMEA, Rajant

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Militarisation of cyberspace requires more vigilance for IT networks

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Growing opportunities in government services

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Q&A Frank Elling, President, Quintech

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Modernization sets stage for leap in analytics

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Improving your signal and mitigating downlink Adjacent Satellite Interference effects in ground satellite terminals 30

All editorial contents Copyright © 2017 DS Air Publications All rights reserved

Photo courtesy US Department of Defense

DS Air Publications 1 Langhurstwood Road Horsham West Sussex, RH12 4QD United Kingdom T: +44 1403 273973 F: +44 1403 273972 [email protected] www.globalmilitarycommunications.com

GMC If you would like to supply information for future issues of GMC please contact Amy Saunders, Editor.


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Game changing drone technology enters UK

Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin meets 2017 F-35 delivery target On Friday, December 15, Lockheed Martin delivered the 66th F-35 aircraft for the year, meeting the joint government and industry delivery target for 2017. To date, more than 265 F-35 aircraft have been delivered to US and international customers. More than 530 pilots and nearly 5,000 maintainers have been trained, and the F-35 fleet has surpassed more than 115,000 cumulative flight hours. “Meeting our 2017 delivery commitment is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our joint government and industry team to deliver the transformational F-35 air system to the warfighter," said Lockheed Martin Executive Vice President and F-35 Program General Manager Jeff Babione. "The team continues to overcome program challenges and achieving this milestone gives our customers confidence that the F-35 enterprise can deliver on the increasing production quantities year-over-year.” Sixty-six F-35 deliveries in 2017 represents more than a 40 percent increase from 2016, and the F-35 enterprise is prepared to increase production volume year-over-year to hit full rate of approximately 160 aircraft in 2023. Production Improvements As production ramps and additional improvements are implemented, Lockheed Martin's goal is to reduce the cost of an F-35A to $80 million by 2020. With the incorporation of lessons learned, process efficiencies, production automation, facility and tooling upgrades, supply chain initiatives and more – the F-35 enterprise has already significantly reduced costs and improved efficiency. For example:

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The price of an F-35A has come down more than 60 percent from the first contract. Touch labour has been reduced by about 75 percent over the last five years. Production span time has decreased by about 20 percent since 2015.

To prepare for an increase in production, Lockheed Martin has hired more than 1,300 employees at its Fort Worth, Texas facility since January 2017, and expects to hire a total of 1,800 as previously announced. The F-35 is built by thousands of men and women in America and around the world. With about 1,400 domestic suppliers in 46 states and Puerto Rico, the program supports more than 170,000 direct and indirect US jobs and delivers $24 billion of economic impact annually. The program also includes more than 100 international suppliers, creating or sustaining thousands of international jobs. The supersonic, multi-role F-35 represents a transformational capability providing unprecedented situational awareness, lethality and survivability. It combines next generation characteristics of radar evading stealth, supersonic speed, and fighter agility with the most powerful and comprehensive integrated GMC sensor package of any fighter aircraft in history.

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Leading UK drone technology and service provider uVue has taken delivery of what is believed to be the world’s first ever production hydrogen drone – the MMC Hydrone 1550 – enabling a new era for drone technology services in the UK to begin. According to uVue, the MMC Hydrone 1500 is a huge breakthrough for the drone services industry because it is now a viable alternative for many services providers using manned helicopters and light aircraft. As a comparison, current battery powered drones average a 30 minute flight time with the voltage constantly dropping during flight. This compares to the MMC Hydrone 1500’s equivalent of three hours with a consistent voltage throughout. The ultimate cost savings for many industries choosing an MMC Hydrone 1500 solution are therefore transformational. Examples of application industries that will benefit from this ground-breaking drone include precision agriculture, security & surveillance, emergency services and construction, to name a few. Russ Delaney, Director of Tech Ops at uVue, an ex-British Ar my helicopter instructor and drone pilot with 20+ years’ experience of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) commented, “After extensive research into drone technology and potential solutions, we are delighted to be the first company to have been appointed to distribute and licence this incredible machine in the UK. Aside from its robust performance, I am particularly impressed by the endurance of the MMC Hydrone 1500 – up to three hours flight time with a 2kg payload – making this a genuine game changer in our industry. The endurance of this particular Hydrone is so strong that it offers a real alternative to full-sized rotary aircraft.” The key focus for uVue during the introduction of the Hydrone 1550 was that all of the onboard systems met the very high safety standards required to operate the drone safely within the UK commercial drone airspace, whilst also remaining within the regulations set by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). uVue is the exclusive licensed distributor for all MMC Drones and the MMC Hydrone 1550 is available to be bought or hired as a service proposition from uVue at https:// GMC www.uvuedrones.co.uk Register now for your own FREE copy of Global Military Communications magazine - visit http://bit.ly/2EgbMjf


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BAE Systems’ Armament Tester selected for US Air Force bombers The US Air Force has selected BAE Systems to design, develop, manufacture, and sustain the Bomber Armament Tester (BAT) system for the Air Force bomber fleet. The BAT system will test the operational readiness of the bomb ejector racks, rotary launchers, and pylon assemblies on board B-1B, B-2A, and B52H aircraft under a contract worth more than $64 million. “The BAT system provides critical verification that the aircraft’s weapon systems are operating as specified,” said Kevin Malone, Vice President of Analytics Systems at BAE Systems. “Our team, which includes Marvin Test Solutions and the Air Force Air Logistics Complexes, has extensive experience developing flight line qualified armament testers and test program sets.” This contract provides for engineering and manufacturing development of 90 BAT systems, which will be delivered in three increments over the next nine years. Work on the program will be performed primarily at BAE Systems’ facilities in San Diego, California, and Fort Worth, Texas. GMC

Photo courtesy of US Air Force

In Brief Comtech Telecommunications has announced that during its second quarter of fiscal 2018, its Orlando, Florida-based subsidiary, Comtech Systems, Inc., which is part of Comtech's Government Solutions segment, has received an additional $1.5 million contract from the Brazilian Military for satellite spares to support an existing system. Fred Kornberg, President and Chief Executive Officer of Comtech Telecommunications Corp. commented, "Our long-term commitment to investing in transmission technology has firmly established Comtech as the choice for this advanced communications solution. We look forward to working with the Brazilian Military on this and future opportunities."


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AeroVironment's RQ-11B Raven Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems. Photo courtesy of Business Wire

Border security: An American focus Border security has never been a more pressing issue for governments than it is today. Maintaining the security of a nation is paramount. Whether it be drugs, weapons, explosives or unauthorised personnel, it is vital that security teams keep unwelcome elements at bay. As such, most borders have several security systems in place, which need to be both effective and efficient, to ensure safety and reduce congestion. Here, we take a look at how one of the world’s largest federal agencies manages its border security. Border security is a complex thing. In high traffic areas where they might be tens of thousands of people crossing a border each day, it’s important to have a well-trained team with smoothly-operating systems in place to ensure the safe and timely passage of permitted personnel and goods. Meanwhile, in low-traffic areas, it can be a tricky balancing act between maintaining a cost-efficient system that is still effective. As threats evolve, it’s vital that the systems in place, and the technology for detecting threats, evolve too. The best border security teams know this, and utilise a mixture of traditional measures such as information exchange between partner foreign national agencies, and the latest in surveillance technology, such as unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and nonintrusive detection techniques. Managing national border security needs The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the United States Department of Homeland Security’s largest federal law enforcement agency, and one of the largest federal agencies in the world. It is tasked with regulating and facilitating international trade, collecting import duties and enforcing US regulations, including immigration, customers and trade. The entity takes a unified and comprehensive approach to border management and control, combining customs, immigration, border security and agricultural protection into one coordinated and supportive activity. On the average day, CBP welcomes almost one million visitors, screens more than 67,000 cargo containers, arrests more than 1,100 people, and seizes almost six tons of illegal drugs. That’s a lot to achieve in one day by anyone’s standards, even with a team of more than 60,000 employees.

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In the first four days of October alone, CBP reported the following incidents:

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A woman was arrested at the Willcox Station in Tuscany with three illegal immigrants, one Mexican and two Belize nationals, in the trunk of her vehicle after a dog alerted officers to the scent. A Mexican man was arrested at the Hidalgo International Bridge traversing Texas and Mexico with more than US$300,000 of unreported currency concealed in his vehicle. The money was found with the use of a non-intrusive imaging system inspection (NI). At the Beecher Falls Border Patrol Station in Swanton, Vermont, eight illegal immigrants from Bulgaria, Ecuador, El Salvador and Guatemala were arrested, and drugs paraphernalia including 71.3g of marijuana, 297.4g of marijuana edibles, and 5oz of hash oil were seized in just three days. Live larvae were discovered by CBP agriculture specialists in foreign cargo at the Houston Seaport. The cargo was ordered to be immediately re-loaded onto the vessel, since the species were considered dangerous to neighbourhood trees, wildlife and forestry. A man was arrested at the Carrizo Springs Station, Texas, with three illegal immigrants from Mexico, Honduras and El Salvador, in the trunk of his vehicle. CBP agents found the immigrants following a vehicle stop with the assistance of a canine. Three Salvadoran nationals were arrested by the Rio Grande Valley Sector agents in Texas for illegally trying to enter the USA. The first was found to be a member of the 18th Street


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North and Central American and Caribbean Basin entities is vital for sustaining situational awareness, and will enable CBP to better predict actions, movements and intents of potential threats. While invaluable, these traditional situational awareness tactics are being augmented with hands-on tactics such as periodic reconnaissance patrols, sign-cutting and tracking and UAS flights. The CBP’s Vision Strategy 2020 states: “The use of technology in the border environment is an invaluable force multiplier to increase situational awareness. The information gleaned from biometrics, mobile surveillance systems, radiation detectors, ground sensors, imaging systems, and other advanced technologies enhances situational awareness and better enables CBP to detect, identify, monitor, and appropriately respond to threats in the Nation’s border regions. CBP will continually evaluate its situational awareness posture and adjust its capabilities as required. Effectively generating and sustaining up-to-date situational awareness enables CBP to plan effectively, enhance its agility, and execute law enforcement operations to secure our homeland.”

US Border Patrol agent scans Imperial Valley for signs of illegal crossings

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Gang, a Los Angeles Street gang comprised primarily of illegal immigrants, while the second was a confirmed member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang (also known as MS-13). The third had been previously arrested by the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office for lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years of age, for which he was sentenced to three years of prison confinement. In a separate incident, CBP agents from the Rio Grande Valley Sector arrested two wanted fugitives from Guatemala and Mexico, as well as a Honduran national member of the MS-13 gang, for trying to illegally enter the USA.

With this level of ill intent, and more than 11,000km of border shared with Mexico and Canada to patrol, CBP continues to enhance and improve the systems and checks it has in place to keep its borders secure. According to CBP’s Vision Strategy 2020: “Since the volume of people and cargo crossing our borders continues to grow, and enforcement resources are finite, CBP will employ an outcome-focused approach in developing integrated, risk-informed strategies to target enforcement and operational capabilities to meet the highest priority threats in the border environment.” One of the agency’s key action plans to maintain and improve its border security capabilities is to increase situational awareness of the air, land and maritime borders. Ensuring coordination with foreign law enforcement partners such as

Second Integrated Fixed Towers system passes acceptance testing CBP initiated the Integrated Fixed Towers (IFT) system in 2012 as a critical step forwards for border surveillance systems. Utilising the acquisition strategy, CBP leveraged a nondevelopmental off-the-shelf approach, featuring a network of towers 80-120 feet tall, each fitted with mounted radar and camera radar, as well as day and night cameras. The cameras and sensor technologies integrate through an intuitive, easy-to-use common operating picture, which provides CBP agents with detailed, long-range, persistent surveillance, to detect, track, identify and classify items of interest. Information from the IFT towers is transmitted via microwave to various Border Patrol Stations, where CBP agents analyse the data and coordinate a response with agents in the field, to resolve situations as they arise. With the increased accuracy provided by the IFT system, agents can rapidly react to evolving threats, and monitor previously unobserved areas. Elbit Systems of America won the US$145 million IFT contract with CBP, and deployed the first IFT system in Nogales, Arizona in 2015, since when it has helped CBP agents monitor the Mexican border. Following the success of this first instalment, a second IFT system was integrated and passed CBP system acceptance testing in Douglas, Arizona, in July 2017. “We achieved this important milestone by working closely with CBP and understanding their agents’ needs,” said Raanan Horowitz, CEO and President of Elbit Systems of America. “Border Patrol agents rely on our homeland security solutions to provide situational awareness and enhanced safety.” As the system integrator, Elbit Systems of America furnishes the sensor towers with radar, day and night cameras, and


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command and control software, which correlates sensor information to provide a single operating picture. Information from all the towers is networked into Border Patrol Station command and control centres, which increases situational awareness for CBP agents. The IFT’s high reliability and proven contractor logistics support provides CBP with 24/7 surveillance coverage. The system also provides CBP with a platform to integrate existing and future sensors to improve border protection and agent safety. CBP undertakes small UAS testing for border security As UASs become more commonplace and more affordable the world over, new applications are starting to take hold, and it’s only logical that border security would be one such consideration. Accordingly, CBP began testing the use of small UASs (sUASs) for border control in September 2017, with the tests envisaged to continue through until 2018. Three small hand-launched UASs will patrol across selected Northern and Southern borders across the USA to establish whether a larger investment for wider deployment is warranted. Three different UASs will be used in Tuscon, Arizona, the Rio Grande Valley, Texas and in Swanton, Vermont. CBP agents will evaluate the sUAS capabilities for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), tracking and acquisition in areas that are too high-risk for ground personnel or manned aircraft. A spokesman from the CBP told federal technology news agency FCW that this is the first time very small UASs have been tested by the agency. “The only drone aircraft being used operationally by CBP are the much larger UAVs flown by Air and Marine Operations,” said the spokesman. “There are no sUAS drones being flown by CBP, outside the very limited scale of this operational test being conducted by the US Border Patrol.” CBP’s existing UAS capabilities include MQ-9 Predator Bs, which require runways, and thus take longer to reach target areas than the smaller, more agile, small UASs. The sUASs being tested include AeroVironment’s Raven and Puma systems, and PSI Tactical’s InstantEye quadcopter. Each of the UAVs weigh less than 15lb and have wingspans smaller than 10 feet, and the latter weighs just 0.7lb. Two of the sUASs fit into the back of an SUV, while the third is small enough to fit into a backpack, making transportation extremely flexible. All of the small UASs are fitted with standard and infrared cameras and operated from the ground. Each of the UASs will be tested in each zone (Arizona, Texas

Elbit Systems IFT

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and Vermont) until the end of January, ensuring a wide range of environments is accounted for. The final review is expected to take place at the end of Spring in 2018, whereupon future investment and deployment opportunities will be assessed. The Border Wall gains momentum Anyone who reads the news is probably all too familiar with US President Trump’s grand plan to build a Border Wall at the American-Mexican border. During the election campaign, Donald Trump announced: “I will build a great, great wall on our Southern border and I’ll have Mexico pay for that wall.” Whatever your thoughts on his political ideas (and the unlikeliness of Mexico ever agreeing to pay for such a wall), it’s been shown that walls are an effective way of securing borders, and the President’s Border Wall is already making progress. The Executive Order: Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, issued on 25th January 2017, states that ‘the [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary shall take steps to immediately plan, design and construct a physical wall along the southern border, using appropriate materials and technology to most effectively achieve complete operational control of the southern border.’ As such, in March CBP issued two Requests for Proposals (RFP) to acquire conceptual wall designs with the intent to construct multiple prototypes. One RFP called for a concrete wall design and the other called for an ‘other than concrete’ wall design. Through the construction of prototypes, CBP will partner with industry to identify the best means and methods to construct a border wall. In August, CBP announced that the contracts for the four concrete wall prototypes for the Border Wall had been awarded to Caddell Construction Co., (DE), LLC, Fisher Sand & Gravel Co., DBA Fisher Industries, Texas Sterling Construction Co., and W. G. Yates & Sons Construction Company. This was followed in September with the contracts for the four ‘other materials’ walls prototypes, which went to Caddell Construction Co., (DE), LLC, KWR Construction, Inc., ELTA North America Inc., and W. G. Yates & Sons Construction Company. Each of the prototypes are designed to deter illegal crossings in the area, and will also allow CBP to evaluate the potential for new wall and barrier designs that could complement existing wall and barrier designs already in use along the border. Designed for the construction of an extremely long wall, making sure that the right materials and techniques are used for the terrain and environment are essential for the project to be successful. Later in September 2017, construction of the eight wall prototypes in San Diego began; four made of concrete, and four made of ‘other materials.’ Each of the eight prototypes will measure 18-30 feet high, and be 30 feet long. “We are committed to securing our border and that includes constructing border walls. Our multi-pronged strategy to ensure the safety and security of the American people includes barriers, infrastructure, technology and people,” said Ronald Vitiello, Acting Deputy Commissioner at CBP. “Moving forward with the prototypes enables us to continue to incorporate all the tools necessary to secure our border.” The eight wall prototypes were completed in October 2017; testing and evaluation is expected to last some two months, but cannot be started for another month as the concrete in the walls must cure prior to testing. According to US.CBP’s Acting Deputy Commissioner, Ronald Vitiello, the testing period will try to answer the basic questions: Can it be climbed? Can it be dug under? Can it withstand cutting tools? Ultimately, there’s no guarantee that any of the prototypes will be selected, or a combination of more than one design might be used. It remains uncertain whether the funding required to build the entire Border Wall will ever materialise, and the opposition from the general public and Congress alike is significant. In any case, time will tell, and the entire world will be watching with GMC bated breath.


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Kinetic Mesh technology and market expectations Rajant was established in 2001 when founders Robert Schena and Paul Hellhake recognised the shor tcomings in cellular and network communications, particularly within mobile voice and data networks used by first responders. The Rajant team envisioned a new, more reliable communications technology that would allow networks to be fully mobile and operate reliably in the most demanding environments and challenging times. Amy Saunders spoke with Chris Mason, VP of Sales for EMEA, to find out more about the company’s Kinetic Mesh technology and market expectations.

Sharp INTELLOS Automated Unmanned Ground vehicle (AUGV)

Identifying early the need for wireless network infrastructure that could effectively support ever-growing mobility demands, Rajant Corporation developed its patented Kinetic Mesh® technology— and in turn became the pioneer provider of the most adaptable, scalable, and readily deployed private mobile broadband networks on the market today. Rajant was established in October 2001, after founders Robert Schena and Paul Hellhake recognized the significant shortcomings in traditional wireless mesh technology, particularly when it came to mobile voice and data networks used by first responders. The Rajant team envisioned a new, more robust mesh technology that would allow these networks to be fully mobile and mobilityenabled, and operate reliably in even the most demanding environments. Enter the Rajant Kinetic Mesh® network.

GMC: What can you tell us about Rajant’s development and key milestones since its inception? Chris Mason: When Rajant’s founders saw the weaknesses with mobile voice and data networks during the events of 9/11, they envisioned a mobile network that would provide anywhere-anytime voice, video, and data communications. It was in 2002 that the company rolled out its Kinetic Mesh technology. Consisting of industrial-strength Rajant BreadCrumb® wireless nodes and patented Rajant InstaMesh® routing software, the deployed networks deliver highly reliable, secure connectivity in tough environmental and extreme weather conditions, are readily scalable, and support mobility across the entire network site at all times. The following represent some of the company’s notable milestones since its inception:

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2002-2003: Acquired early DoD R&D funding specifically earmarked for battlefield communication development; Rajant’s technology is a critical component of the overall communications solution for several prominent DoD programs to include C-RAM, SoldierLINK, and Wolfhound projects; Obtained advanced security and cryptography certifications including Suite A, AES Suite B and FIPS 140-2 Level 2; Awarded Top Supplier Northrop Grumman 2011-2013; 2014: Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Award for Enabling Technology Award for Industrial Mesh; BT and Rajant forged partnership to bring Kinetic Mesh wireless to industrial networks; Mitsui USA and Rajant Joint to Deliver Wireless Solutions to IIoT and autonomous applications;

GMC Q&A

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Photo courtesy of Rajant


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Sharp Electronics selects Rajant as network communications platform for perimeter security based INTELLOS™ A-UGV; and Rajant delivers InstaMesh-enabled drone for UAV surveillance applications.

GMC: Can you provide an overview of your product offering? Chris Mason: Rajant manufactures mobile, scalable and highly reliable kinetic wireless mesh network technology, which provides an always connected communications network so critical applications can be accessed in real time. As the exclusive provider of private wireless networks powered by the patented Kinetic Mesh® network, BreadCrumb® network nodes, and InstaMesh® networking software, Rajant enables its customers to rapidly deploy a carrier grade adaptable network that leverages the power of real-time data to deliver on-demand, critical business intelligence. Rajant BreadCrumbs can seamlessly integrate with any Wi-Fi or Ethernet-connected device to deliver low-latency, high-throughput data, voice and video applications across the meshed, self-healing network. Rajant’s Kinetic Mesh® networks are made up of intelligent nodes called BreadCrumbs, which are powered by its proprietary InstaMesh® protocol. These mission critical networks have been successfully deployed across the globe and offer customers sustainable investments that change the way they deliver voice, video and data while bringing real-time data to its users to streamline operations and positively impact decision making. GMC: Which vertical and geographical markets are key to Rajant’s business, and where do you see the most opportunity going forwards? Chris Mason: While Rajant’s initial start and subsequent success was built on military and mining, the company has expanded its reach into a number of other verticals, all of which have the common requirements of mobility and mission critical reliability. It is also not uncommon that the markets where our technology is optimised tend to be rugged outdoor environments where extending fibre or wired infrastructures are difficult or cost prohibitive, or both. To date, in addition to mines, you can find Kinetic Mesh networks deployed in O&G, ports, construction, railyards, and municipalities. Within these industry sectors, our technology supports a wide array of data, voice and video applications to include surveillance and monitoring, perimeter security and fleet management.

Looking forward, Rajant is seeing opportunities to deploy its Kinetic Mesh technology into indoor manufacturing facilities where traditional Wi-Fi falls short in establishing reliable connectivity. Agriculture also represents a significant new market space for us as the demand for autonomous tractors and precision farming lend themselves to wireless technology that can be placed directly on heavy equipment and machinery that already includes many sensors monitoring the equipment. We are continuing to advance our capabilities around UAVs and UGVs and see the defence space as a prime target for the innovation we are driving in that area. GMC: What can you tell us about the development of mesh technology, and where does Rajant’s Kinetic Mesh fit in? Chris Mason: As previously mentioned, Rajant’s Kinetic Mesh technology was created shortly after the weaknesses of preexisting networks were amplified during the devastating events surrounding 9/11. Today, Rajant Kinetic Mesh technology is successfully deployed across the globe, providing industrial customers with a highly reliable and secure network infrastructure that has addressed many of the deficiencies that have plagued other network offerings including interference conflicts, high latency and lack of adequate and comprehensive security. As the only solution proven to establish and sustain any-node to any-node communication across hundreds of highbandwidth nodes, the Rajant Kinetic Mesh network continually operates and ‘self-heals’ with no single point of failure. Developed with critical communication in mind, the company’s wireless nodes are proven to deliver unparalleled reliability, performance, scalability, security and flexibility in an easy-to-deploy and portable product. Rajant BreadCrumbs can be added to any pre-existing Wi-Fi or Ethernet-connected device to deliver low-latency, high-throughput data, voice and video applications across the network. Sometimes people have a tendency to assume the company’s Kinetic Mesh technology is the same as Wi-Fi or traditional mesh, this however is not the case. Rajant Kinetic Mesh is significantly different from traditional Wi-Fi or mesh technologies in a number of important ways:

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Kinetic Mesh does not do ‘hand-off,’ rather it establishes multiple connections with multiple nodes – something the company refers to as the Make, Make, Make, Never Break paradigm; Kinetic Mesh networks have no controller node and as a result have lower network management overhead on the network performance; Rajant networks have no single point of failure; Rajant networks employ multi-band frequencies to mitigate interference and provide network wide redundancy; and Most importantly, Rajant Kinetic Mesh networks support mobility, unlike that of fixed or management-intensive Wi-Fi technologies.

So, this is how Rajant differs from others. Using a combination of our BreadCrumb ® wireless network nodes and Insta Mesh® networking software, Rajant Kinetic Mesh® networks employ any-node to any-node capabilities to continuously and instantaneously route data via the best available traffic path and frequency for any number of nodes, all with extremely low overhead.

Photo courtesy of Rajant

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GMC: In April 2017, Rajant’s Kinetic Mesh technology was used by Sharp Electronics Corporation as the wireless communications infrastructure for the Sharp INTELLOS Automated Unmanned Ground vehicle (A-UGV). What can you tell us about this application and the feedback received? Chris Mason: As a mobile platform capable of traversing various terrains, the Sharp INTELLOS A-UGV provides outdoor surveillance, security, safety, and maintenance inspection patrols. The INTELLOSE A-UGV extends the impact of traditional


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security forces, so it stands to reason that it would require a network infrastructure capable of supporting continuous connectivity and real-time communications of sensor and monitoring data. Capturing video, audio and environmental data, and communicating that information to a command and control centre, requires an advanced network, and a Kinetic Mesh network offers a best-in-class mission critical network infrastructure. The mobility, reliability and scalability of Rajant’s network were key reasons for the company’s selection. The majority of customers who deploy Rajant networks do so because they need robust, secure network infrastructures that can deliver data from devices, cameras and sensors to be used to make intelligent decisions in real-time. Additionally, because the AUVG is always on the move, traditional Wi-Fi technology would not provide enough reliable connectivity to support the mission critical nature of the INTELLOS’ A-UVG minute-to-minute functions. GMC: How might your Kinetic Mesh technology be used in other applications in the government and military sectors, and what benefits will it provide compared with competitor systems? Chris Mason: Our technology is ideal for public safety, security, first responders and municipalities, including CCTV operators. Rajant Kinetic Mesh® networks allow communities to improve surveillance and situational awareness with high-bandwidth transmission of security and surveillance data. The any-node to any-node communications enabled with Rajant’s BreadCrumbs® ensures that there is no single point of failure throughout the network. Data encryption is a key feature of our network, as information flows through the mesh, it stays encrypted all the way through and is not decrypted until it is delivered to its final destination. With the imminent threat of cyber-attacks, this encryption helps protect vital communication, as well as the location of nodes and other active devices in the network. The authentication process also provides protection from packet injection or replay attacks. GMC: In May 2017, Rajant announced advances in its Kinetic Mesh Wireless Network technology that will power in-air networks, enabling drone manufacturers to strengthen drone-to-drone and drone-to-ground communications. Can you elaborate on this, and explain what benefits it will deliver for military applications?

Chris Mason: The fast-moving drone industry definitely caught the eye of one of Rajant’s engineering teams located in Morehead, Kentucky. This team quickly recognised the many challenges drone manufacturers were facing in trying to deploy drones for longer durations, across further distances and with more intelligence capabilities. Despite many advancements in the physical and components aspects of drones, drone communications were still legacy-based simple remote control operated, despite growing interest to support an array of other applications. With a focus on new ways to utilise both its industry leading InstaMesh routing protocol and its ruggedized wireless BreadCrumb nodes, Rajant has now advanced both persistent tethered drones as well as established aerial broadband with swarms. Airborne swarms of drones are equipped with lightweight Rajant BreadCrumbs to help solve many of the challenges they contend with, so Rajant began working on establishing aerial broadband with all of the attributes and capabilities of a ground-based network. Creating a mobile mesh network in the air, tethered drones enabled with Rajant technology are rapidly deployable and can be easily integrated into pre-existing networks, working instantly to provide high-capacity, far-reaching aerial broadband coverage. By using the drone as an instant tower to create ‘temporary fixed’ communications, law enforcement and other officials can add another dimension of awareness, with aerial on-the-spot connectivity, no matter where they are, and access real-time mission-critical data. Employing a Kinetic Mesh network to operate aerial drones provides the security, scalability and mobility that standard networks cannot deliver. The technology can be easily redeployed and expanded in multiple ways, while still operating with the same level of reliability. While traditional mesh networks degrade as more nodes are added, Kinetic Mesh grows stronger with each additional node. The nodes self-configure, making it simple to expand the network. GMC: What do you expect Rajant to achieve in 2018 and beyond? Chris Mason: We expect to see continued growth in military and mining sectors, but are particularly excited as we have several significant port and railyard deployments that will be deployed by end of calendar year. I also believe that we will be identifying new channels to engage our technology to include more OEM opportunities and involve more eco-system partners who are also seeking better network communications solutions GMC to advance their customers IIoT demands.

Rajant BreadCrumb® wireless nodes


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Network security is key throughout government and military forces the world over

Militarisation of cyberspace requires more vigilance for IT networks Network security is key throughout government and military forces the world over, and it’s becoming an increasingly complex feat to achieve. Information is fast being considered every bit as deadly as actual artillery. Here, Paul Darby, Regional Manager, EMEA at Vidder, outlines the ins and outs of keeping critical networks secure, and reports on Operation Convergent Response, where new and effective cybersecurity solutions were proven. Information is, more often than not, the single most important factor when it comes to military victories. Strategic intelligence, battle plans, troop manoeuvres and the location of supplies are converted digitally so that they can be distributed to command posts using cable, satellite and radio. The importance of this information cannot be over emphasised, its impact considered so crucial that it is classified in the same category as artillery as a deadly long-range weapon.1 How this information is stored and accessed is constantly evolving as the military slowly migrates to the types of systems commonly used by commercial operations. It was only last year, for example, that the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) moved its computing away from the secure internal legacy network it had used for the previous decade to take advantage of the first Microsoft data centres to open in the UK. With such a move comes concerns about security. Despite the many security protocols that accompany the storage and access of highly sensitive data such as banking details or personal health records, the impact of a breach of military information could undermine command and control infrastructure and cost countless lives.

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Cyber espionage Warfare today takes many forms, and one of the most insidious is not on the physical battlefield at all, but from malicious hackers sitting behind a computer screen with an eye on any chink in crucial IT networks. In its annual Data Breach Investigations Report, communications giant Verizon said that whilst around 73 percent of breaches are financially motivated, 21 percent are related to cyber-espionage. An increasing number of these are politically motivated or state sponsored, and this has implications for military forces across the globe. Ukraine is a good example of how cyber attacks on IT networks have had a long-term and serious impact. Over the past three years, the country has suffered repeated hacks on military, finance, transport and political targets, eliminating data and destroying computers. In June of this year, the severity of a hack that caused government ministries to shut down in Ukraine, prompted NATO’s Secretary General to warn that a cyber attack could trigger Article 5 of the north Atlantic treaty in the same way as a conventional military assault. According to the Daily Telegraph, the same attack saw the British Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, state that the UK would consider retaliating militarily against a cyber attack by another state. The growing militarisation of cyber space has put more pressure than ever on the security of IT networks ironically at a time when digital transformation is opening up access to military personnel. It was over four years ago that the Pentagon approved iOS 6 mobile devices for use when connecting to defence department networks. Military-specific virtual private networks have also become more and more common in recent years, improving communications and remote access to crucial data with an additional layer of protection.


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Adopting zero trust Of course, successful civilisations work in an atmosphere of mutual trust, and, given that we are living in a digital age, any lack of trust has the power to undermine progress. However, the biggest challenge we face in the current cyber war is that we can’t identify the enemy, which means trust has to be given with great caution, if at all. Military communications are improved and enhanced through access to digital applications, devices and cloud computing, but a balance needs to be struck to ensure that this valuable access is totally secure and strictly controlled. The only way to do this is through systems that provide granular access controls to assets based on trust. Access should be permitted only on the basis of having a deep knowledge of where a connection initiates from and where it is going to, validation of relevant credentials and continuous monitoring to ensure it is restricted only to approved assets. Sharing data and opening up communications also means exposing IT systems to the growing community of cyber attackers and their sponsors. When this data includes important military strategy, we simply cannot afford to do this lightly. A zero trust approach is the only way that, for now, we can protect ourselves against the stealthy but determined creep of cyber warfare. A case in point – Operation Convergent Response Currently information solutions for first responders, the medically trained team that are first on the scene of an accident, incident or event, are built using customised, highly complex and costly communications and application systems. While the adoption of mobile devices and public clouds have become the norm for enterprises, these have, until now, been considered too risky for emergency services. Global communications company Verizon recently carried out ‘Operation Convergent Response’ (OCR), and it was the first large-scale demonstration of how IT networked services could be used to instantly provide information to the vital first responders team. OCR brought together experts in emergency response and communications for two days of hands-on exercises. A key aspect of OCR was to showcase how Verizon’s LTE service combined with a concept called Software Defined

Perimeter (which works on the principle of allowing access to the network on a ‘need-to-know’ basis) enabled secure connectivity between emergency response personnel, surveillance equipment and cloud-hosted applications. Event communication was provided by Verizon’s truckmounted LTE tower, which is designed to provide instant voice and high-speed data coverage during emergencies. Surveillance drones and robots transmitted live video to a Microsoft Azure cloud-based command centre using Verizon LTE. First responders were able to access hosted applications utilizing Verizon’s new SDP service. Operation Convergent Response featured many real-world scenarios including a subway accident, flood and chemical spill. The most exciting event, however, was a hostage rescue demonstration using a drone to air drop a robot with high resolution imaging onto the roof of a building. The video stream was sent to hosted apps that were protected by Verizon’s SDP service. The enhanced situational awareness provided security personnel with high resolution targeting information. One of the technical highlights of OCR was how Verizon is applying the Software Defined Perimeter (SDP) principle built on Vidder’s PrecisionAccess managed security service. This verifies the user and device identity before granting missionbased access. A certificate-based mutual TLS virtual private network ensures that connections cannot be intercepted when first responders connect to hosted application resources. To stop malware from spreading through network connections, the SDP provisions all connectivity at an application layer i.e. from the ‘app inside’ the user’s device to a specific port of a server. Any malware on the user’s device is outside the application layer tunnel. Also demonstrated was the new remote trust assessment inspection capabilities of the SDP service. The combination of SDP’s strong security model combined with Verizon’s LTE coverage allowed the first responders to securely access critical information on their mobile computing device. The blending of multiple services created a fully integrated on-demand command and control system that was well received by event participants. OCR successfully proved that public communications and computing services offer first responders a more effective approach to information collection,

Left to right Jeff Schweitzer of Verizon, Vidder’s CTO, Junaid Islam and Jad Muntasser of Verizon


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processing and distribution than legacy hardware-based solutions. Behind Operation Convergent Response was valuable military experience. The exercise was developed and led by Jeff Schweitzer - Verizon Enterprise’s Chief Innovation Architect. Prior to joining Verizon, Jeff served in the US Army and Pentagon as a communication expert. To ensure that OCR scenarios reflected real world challenges Jad Muntasser, a former Navy

Seal and a leading expert in anti-terror and hostage rescue operations, helped create the scenarios. Both Jeff and Jad have extensive combat experience and have continued their GMC commitment to public service in private life. 1

Joint Pub 3-09, Joint fire support, “conduct information operations” is a key fires task on a par with “conduct fire support” using artillery and airstrikes

Shawn Hakl, Vice President, Verizon

Survivor R ready to roll – Rheinmetall delivers two special ops vehicles to the Saxony State Police On 15 December 2017 Rheinmetall transferred the first of two heavily protected Survivor R transport vehicles to the Saxony State Police. The second system was delivered before Christmas. The Free State of Saxony ordered the two vehicles from Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV) in February of 2017. Forming part of an extensive anti-terror package, the vehicles will be used to equip special police units in Saxony. The Survivor R is a compelling symbol of Rheinmetall’s extraordinary expertise in the worlds of security and mobility. Developed in cooperation with Achleitner, a maker of special vehicles, it is the perfect answer for robust law enforcement operations. Vehicles of this type are especially important in high-risk situations when police special operators have to be safely transported to the area of operations or for evacuating persons from the danger zone. Among other things, Saxony’s two Survivor R vehicles feature a special signalling system; an integrated, remotely controlled observation turret with optronics and effectors; a high-performance loudspeaker; and a hydraulically operated rear ramp for rapid entry and exit. A powerful 340 HP engine with torque of 1,250 Nm gives the 17-tonne vehicle an outstanding mobility. Moreover, the environmentally friendly Survivor R meets the latest Euro 6 emission norms. The armoured monocoque cabin provides the crew with all-round protection from multiple threats. Ergonomically designed, the well-lit interior offers sufficient space for crewmembers and their personal equipment as well as extensive communications and command and control technology. Systematic use of serially produced, standard commercial and military components has resulted in a reasonably priced vehicle – one which benefits from Rheinmetall MAN’s global service network, assuring efficient maintenance and repairs worldwide. This makes the Survivor R a cost-effective, easy-to-maintain vehicle platform with low lifecycle costs and outstanding operational readiness. The Berlin State Police have also ordered the Survivor R. GMC

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Growing opportunities in government services Satellite is a key enabler for government and military groups the world over, delivering unparalleled capabilities both at home and abroad. From keeping military commanders up to date in the field, enabling heads of government to securely conduct international affairs, and to allowing officials to respond to local emergencies, satellite provides vital voice, imaging, video, data and connectivity services the world over. While in previous years, many governments had stalled or cut their space programme budgets, a turnaround in investment is expected soon, prompting satellite service providers to ramp up their offerings. Government services have always been a key application for the satellite sector. The delivery of secure, reliable, alwayson, global communications is vital for government and military applications alike. In the battlefield, real-time updates enabled by satellite can make the difference between life and death, while within government departments, the transfer of classified documents and communications is key to operational functionality. Defining future demands As is the case in many sectors, government needs are changing as technology advances and new applications develop. In the November 2016 White Paper, ‘SES Charts Rising Government Needs’ SES forecast that the global market for government and military fixed satellite service (FSS) capacity would reach 615 transponder equivalents (TPEs) by 2024, up from 470 TPEs in 2014, with even higher growth expected for high throughout satellite (HTS) capacity, at 82.3Gbps in 2024, up from 1.97Gbps in 2014. SES identified the following key market trends as major drivers in government satellite services demand: Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) technology using remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) The exponential growth in RPAS-based ISR for civil and military uses is a good indicator of the direction of the international government market. In 2010, 69 percent of the global demand for RPAS came from the US Government, while in 2015 the US accounted for 49 percent of global demand. During this fiveyear period, the US Government increased its use of ISR

systems while decreasing its physical presence, but international demand increased even more during the same years. By deploying RPAS-based ISR, governments can maintain an ISR capability without having to keep a team on the ground, decreasing risk to personnel and saving costs. The connectivity requirements of RPAs are demanding; for example, Predator RPAS require 3-5Mbps, Reapers require 5-10Mbps, and Global Hawks require 10-50Mbps. As demand for these systems increases, so will demand for the communications infrastructure that supports them. Network connectivity As managed network access becomes critical for governments to deliver applications and services to their populations, connectivity is even more important for military missions, peacekeeping, and civilian applications. Governments recognise the value of a resilient communications infrastructure that operates regardless of the location or situation. As terrestrial communications are not immune to disruption from natural disasters or conflict, commercial satellite communications (COMSATCOM) also provide the vital link where existing military satellite communications (MILSATCOM) capabilities are overstretched or lack coverage. Personnel welfare Military personnel serving overseas, like their civilian counterparts, have become accustomed to constant connectivity. Their desire to connect with loved ones back home or enjoy the same leisure activities does not disappear once they are posted to a remote location. This requires connectivity that can deliver regardless of location, and COMSATCOM is an ideal solution. As the welfare factor becomes more impor tant, the COMSATCOM service to government entities is expected to increase. Customised services Governments are identifying new and efficient uses of satellite solutions, causing an increase in demand from this sector. Commercially hosted payloads are a good example of this. The flexibility and cost-efficiency offered by hosted payloads ensures that a government can contract many relevant services that a satellite is required for on a shorter timeline than building their own. Hosted payloads are well suited for Earth observation programmes, hosting of sensors, proof of technology missions,

Terran Orbital engineer constructs a satellite platform. Photo courtesy Tyvak

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UltiSat's Denmark teleport

or even dedicated frequencies and/or reflectors. A hosted payload can also be attractive for governments that do not yet have a spacecraft in orbit and want to take their place in the international space community. A turning point in government budgets Euroconsult’s May 2016 ‘Government Space Programs: Benchmarks, Profiles & Forecasts to 2026’ report states that global space budgets fell by two percent year-on-year to US$62.2 billion in 2016. Governments launched 75 satellites in 2016, down from the historical peak in 2015, but in line with the last five-year average. “The good news is that 2017 should mark a turning point with budgets recovering growth after five years of erosion,” said Steve Bochinger, COO at Euroconsult and Editor of the report. “The last few years were marked by opposing trends between countries boosting their spending and those forced to apply costcutting measures. Most countries, especially the leading ones, should converge into a new investment cycle that should drive up investments in space programs globally for the coming years.” The report expects global spending in government space programs to grow at an estimated US$79 billion annually by 2026. The number of countries investing in space is steadily increasing, with 70 countries in 2016, up from 47 ten years ago. In the coming years, more than 80 countries are planning to invest in space technologies and capabilities, showing that governments consider space a valuable investment to support their national socio-economic, strategic and technological development. The US remains by far the world’s largest spender in space programs, with an estimated US$35.9 billion spent in 2016, and the country has started to reverse the 25 percent budget slide initiated in 2010. Meanwhile, China overtook Russia in 2016 with the world’s second-largest space program, growing at an 11 percent CAGR in local currency to RMB32.6 billion (around US$4.9 billion). This followed a 20 percent fall in local currency of RMB213 billion (around US$3.2billion) in Russian space investment in 2016 due to budget cuts. Japan, France, Germany, India and the EU all invest more than US$1 billion in their space programs. Today, manned spaceflight programs are the largest total expenditure, with US$11.4 billion invested. Earth observation

missions is the second-largest spending area, with 58 countries having invested some US$10.9 billion. Launch technology comes third in total spending, with US$6 billion invested. With a great wealth of new opportunities expected in the next few years, space sector companies have planned and launched many new offerings tailored specifically for the government and military segments. Others have taken the route of adding new expertise in government services through collaborations, joint ventures and acquisitions. Speedcast enhances government activities with UltiSat acquisition deal Global communications provider Speedcast International has been making a lot of moves lately to expand its reach with new application segments, notably so with the acquisition of Harris CapRock. July 2017 saw it announce its latest move, when it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire UltiSat for a purchase consideration of up to US$100 million, payable over two years and subject to the ongoing performance of the company. UltiSat is a prominent provider of remote communications and professional services to governments, particularly the US Government, as well as international government organisations (IGOs) and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The acquisition will significantly strengthen Speedcast’s position in the government and NGO sectors, and complements its existing government activities in Australia Europe and Latin America. “The acquisition of UltiSat extends Speedcast’s position serving government and NGO customers, at a time when we expect government spending to rise. UltiSat has built a really strong reputation providing remote communications and professional services to key customers, such as the US Government and IGOs,” said Speedcast’s CEO, Pierre-Jean Beylier. “I am excited to have the UltiSat team joining Speedcast. Speedcast’s scale, global network and unique support services capabilities will enable the combined group to provide expanded services and coverage for UltiSat’s customers around the world. Speedcast will also be able to leverage UltiSat’s solutions and expertise to serve other governments globally with which Speedcast has existing relationships.” UltiSat’s CEO Mohammed G. Abutaleb will lead the newlyformed government division at Speedcast, which will focus on


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providing communication solutions and professional services to Speedcast’s and UltiSat’s existing and new government and IGO customers, as well as driving new growth in the nearly US$5 billion market for government and militar y satellite communications. “The UltiSat team is thrilled to join the Speedcast Group. Speedcast’s scale and global capabilities will enable us to expand the portfolio of services we can offer to our customers and to pursue new opportunities. This is an exciting development for our employees and our customers, and I look forward to taking our combined government and IGO business to new heights over the years to come,” said Abutaleb. The transaction is expected to complete in the fourth quarter of 2017 subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. Airbus expands Skynet capabilities with new channel partners in Asia Airbus owns and operates the Skynet X-band satellite constellation of seven satellites and the ground network to provide all beyond line of sight (BLOS) communications to the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD). The contract also allows other NATO and allied governments such as members of the fiveeyes community (the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand and Canada) to use the Skynet system to augment their existing services. In line with increasing market expectations and growing space programme budgets, Airbus has continued to expand its own government services capabilities. In May 2017, Airbus added Planet Communications Asia Public Co., Ltd. (PlanetComm) to its channel partner programme for Skynet 5 military satellite communication services, and expanded its existing partnership with Speedcast. Under the channel partner agreement, PlanetComm and Speedcast will offer Skynet Xband and UHF services and part of the satellite communications portfolios. Speedcast has been delivering tactical secure communications services to the Australian and New Zealand Governments since September 2016, and the partnership has now been extended to cover customers in the Philippines. In addition, on behalf of Airbus, Speedcast manages the Asia anchor station facility for the Skynet 5A military satellite, based at Speedcast’s teleport in Adelaide, Australia. Meanwhile, the newly-signed partnership with PlanetComm covers Thailand, and expands their product offering into the military market. “It is a really positive step to further increase our relationship with Speedcast, and also PlanetComm within countries that can really benefit from the unique capabilities of the Skynet fleet,” said Richard Franklin, Head of Secure Communications at Airbus Defence and Space. Airbus continues to develop new partnerships to deliver highly resilient Skynet military satellite communication services to the Asia-Pacific region following the move of its Skynet 5A satellite from 6 degrees East to 95 degrees East to provide global X-band and UHF coverage in this region. The relocation of Skynet 5A was initiated in September 2015 to extend the Xband coverage and services from 178 West to 163 East, including the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific region. The Skynet network now offers global military coverage, expanding core service reach for the UK military and augmenting coalition capabilities in the region. Since the relocation of Skynet 5A, Airbus Defence and Space has signed ten channel partner agreements with companies in the Asia-Pacific region and in the USA. “PlanetComm is truly honoured to become an authorised Airbus Channel Partner,” said Trevor Thompson, President and Chief Technology Officer at PlanetComm. ”Since the relocation of Skynet 5 to 95 degrees East, which is ideally suited for Thailand and Southeast Asia in achieving high Earth station look angles, we have been actively promoting Skynet-5’s X-band and UHF satcom services to the Thai Defence Forces and

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Government agencies. We are pleased that we have now formalized our business relationship and can continue to actively promote Airbus Skynet services in Thailand.” Lockheed Martin Lockheed Martin, too, is trying to get a bigger share of the government market with its recent June 2017 investment in nanosatellite producer Terran Orbital. According to Lockheed Martin, the investment will create opportunities for the companies to share their expertise and customer relationships to advance this emerging technology. “Terran brings established customer relationships across a broad range of civil, military, commercial and classified customers,” said Chris Moran, Executive Director and General Manager of Lockheed Martin Ventures. “The opportunity to invest in a nanosat leader allows us to address our customer’s increasing interest in rapid, responsive and cost-effective technology missions and demonstrations.” The agreement includes cash and in-kind investments for an equity stake in Terran. Lockheed Martin has partnered with Terran in the past on Department of Defense (DoD) and NASA missions. This investment will enable the expansion of that relationship. “An equity investment by Lockheed Martin allows us to grow our business while further solidifying our relationship with the leader in aerospace and defense to provide a broader range of innovative solutions to our customers,” said Tony Previte, CEO of Terran Orbital. While Lockheed Martin has provided funding to venture stage companies since 2007, it refocused in 2016 to longer term, strategic investments in technology innovations that could drive growth in existing, adjacent and new markets for Lockheed Martin. With the government services sector set to grow significantly in the coming years, and increased competition in Lockheed Martin’s other business areas, the investment could be a boon for long-term results. GMC

Artist's rendering of Skynet satellites


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RF performance and reliability

Frank Elling, President, Quintech Electronics and Communications

Quintech Electronics & Communications, Inc. was founded in 1989 and incorporated that same year in Indiana, Pennsylvania. The company is a state-of-the-art designer and manufacturer of RF signal management communications equipment and globally distributed. Its products are vital and necessary for RF signal management and are the keystones to the automation of today’s advanced telecommunication network infrastructures and test laboratories. Its worldwide customers include satellite, government, wireless telecommunications, broadcast and CATV service and equipment providers. Quintech produces RF matrix switches, redundancy switches, relay switches, splitters, combiners, amplifiers, frequency converters and DC powering products. The products are available in wireless, L-band, IF, and broadband frequencies. These RF signal management products are used for test and measurement, monitor and control, signal replication, backup and protection, and legal surveillance. Designed for high reliability and maximized uptime, the company has products in active service for over 25 years. Quintech has historically emphasized the design and development of customer driven RF signal management solutions in order to provide the best possible result for its customers.

Quintech Electronics & Communications, Inc. (Quintech) has succeeded for more than thirty years providing world class products and services to domestic and international customers. Quintech products are deployed in over 120 countries. Working within the analog RF discipline of telephony, cable/HFC, wireless, broadcast and satellite systems, Quintech is one of the leading providers of RF signal management products and solutions worldwide. The company designs and manufactures a variety of products including RF matrix switches, redundancy switches, relay switches, splitters, combiners, amplifiers, DC powering products and test automation and control software. Quintech products enable its customers to bridge the gaps which continue to exist between converging broadband transmission, reception and transport technologies. Amy Saunders spoke with Quintech’s President, Frank Elling, to find out about the company’s market presence, capabilities, and expectations for the future. GMC: Can you provide an overview of Quintech’s development, from its founding to its position in the market today? Frank Elling: Quintech invented and patented its first RF matrix switch in 1996, as an automated patch panel with integrated splitting capabilities. Early customers such as ESPN, Turner Broadcasting and Globecomm employed our switches for Network Operations Center infrastructure. In addition to our industry-first patented L-band RF Matrix Switch, other notable Quintech inventions and industry firsts include the first three-stage L-band Matrix and first patented frequency stacker. In addition, Quintech designed the first rack-mount redundant power supply for LNB powering and the first rackmount L-band splitter and combiner in the industry. Quintech has achieved an impeccable reputation for RF performance and reliability required for today’s telecommunications infrastructures. Building on our success, we will continue to thrive and meet the necessities of today and the challenges of tomorrow. The drivers of convergence are the same today as they always have been. The world becomes a closer place due to the growth and offerings of new and different technologies that will shape and form the immensely diverse telecosm that lies ahead. Quintech’s unique opportunities are based on the premise that preferred RF platforms are essentially wireless. RF is Quintech’s core expertise, and RF is the only way to transport over air communications. GMC: What can you tell us about your products, and how they compare to others available on the market? Frank Elling: Quintech designs and manufactures the world’s largest configuration L-band matrix switching systems. The patented XTREME 256 is a

GMC Q&A

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Mesh Networks. Photo courtesy of Quintech


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disruptive technology that has defined the next generation Lband matrix switch. Advanced RF design and power management methods allow the XTREME 256 to achieve industry leading gain flatness and linearity for maximum RF performance while cutting power consumption by up to 80 percent. The system brings expansion by reduction by allowing the user to minimize rack space requirements with highly scalable packaging. The switch features a patented flexible matrix architecture that supports a variety of large symmetric e.g. 128x128 and industry exclusive asymmetric configurations e.g. 48x208, 64x192, 160x96 in a single 12 RU chassis. The XTREME 256 also supports multi-chassis configurations up to 2048x2048. In the satellite, government and military space, Quintech designs and manufactures matrices of which thousands are deployed worldwide. These L-band matrices and ancillary products offer Network Operations Centers (NOCs), teleports, Earth stations, IP and cable headends the ability to dramatically expand reliable operational capabilities. Question: Which market segments are key to Quintech’s business, and how have they changed over the years? Frank Elling: Our products are used by a wide variety of telecommunications customers including commercial satellite broadcast, government and military satellite Earth stations, wireless test and measurement laboratories and cable/HFC networks. Our products have typically been developed for the CATV, L-band, and wireless frequency ranges spanning from return path 5MHz to WiFi 6GHz. In addition to the standard product line, Quintech also works with customers to develop custom products to meet special RF design requirements. Our customer list is a ‘who’s who’ of almost every tier-one player in their respective industries. Our products are part of the global communications backbone. In satellite and cable, the growth in channels and transponder capacity has driven demand for our matrix switches for greater signal management capabilities. The flexibility and modularity of our RF matrices, combined with superior performance, reduced power consumption and physical footprint help operators minimize operating costs and overhead. Quintech’s NEXUS family of wireless test lab equipment and software emulate free space in a controlled environment, which is essential to testing wireless network equipment, including base stations, antennas, and user terminals. Our proprietary Q-LAAMP ® laboratory automation management software

Full mesh network

provides the test laboratory with the ability for a large number of individual users to run tests simultaneously. In mobile communications, the bandwidth and amount of content that needs to be delivered to mobile hand-held devices and radios, in both military and civil applications has proliferated in recent years. In the US wireless sector, carriers such as AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint, as well as military wireless network and equipment suppliers need to efficiently test and validate the ever-changing wireless handsets, protocols, and radio or air interfaces and waveforms. LEO and MEO satellite constellations designed for mobile communications have similar network requirements. Question: Where do you see the greatest market opportunities going forward? Frank Elling: New satellite technologies that have been introduced in recent years such as high throughput satellite (HTS) proliferate as the industry utilizes lower orbits and smaller satellites in larger constellations for massive data transmission, improved latency and cellular backhaul purposes. These HTS platforms utilize spot beams and frequency reuse to provide significantly more capacity than traditional satellites. Worldwide satellite Earth stations primarily operate using down-converted L-band and IF-band frequencies. Employing L-band matrix switches for the up and down link paths allow for the dynamic routing of signals between different gateway antennas and for dynamic allocation of bandwidth to specific spot beams. Satellite broadband services continue to deploy infrastructure in teleports and to remote corners of the globe. We see continued growth in the need for our reliable RF matrices that include large configuration systems for C4ISR purposes such as military teleport, special surveillance sites and network operation centers. On the mobile side, wireless networks continue to increase bandwidth and add devices, from handhelds to tablets to Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Tactical radio networks face the increased complexities of testing and validating RF base stations and devices for civil and military applications. These can range from fixed mobile to vehicle-to-vehicle which creates mesh networks. Our NEXUS family of RF matrices for wireless test labs fills a need driven by these applications. Question: What trends are you seeing right now in the government and military markets that might affect your business, and how will Quintech adapt? Frank Elling: Modernization and refitting legacy Earth station communication platforms offers Quintech the opportunity to provide the customer with state-of-the-art and reliable signal management products to meet their demanding and specific requirements. For example, Electronic Warfare (EW) and monitoring of worldwide telecommunications are utilized extensively by allied intelligence agencies to gather and share intercepted and monitored signals for anti-terrorist and cyber security purposes. The QE3 and XTREME L-band matrices are deployed worldwide by intelligence organizations for these operations. Quintech’s latest RF signal management systems technology, the XTREME 256 matrix, is designed specifically for the continued evolution of these worldwide deployments. Modernization of US and worldwide government legacy communications infrastructures need to be keyed to today’s modern Earth station requirements. Presently, the US has implemented programs to modernize and upgrade to new standards, existing Earth stations around the globe. New satellite platforms for communications deploy more complex payloads, spot beams, and switching, making them increasingly complex and ‘cellular-like’ so we see potential for RF test automation solutions on the terminal side, and possibly elsewhere. Wireless Mesh Networking and Software Defined Radio (SDR) are applications we see that requires complex RF test lab solutions, and customers are using our NEXUS and QLAAMP solution to test and validate military wireless mesh systems.


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Question: With software defined radio (SDR) becoming increasingly popular within military groups the world over, how far do you think the technology could possibly develop? What are the limits? Frank Elling: We believe that SDR technology can bring huge gains in flexibility, performance, and cost savings for radio, and satellite systems and terminals, and we’ve seen market research projects for 12 percent growth through 2021. But key challenges to market expansion, according to some analysts, are development and integration. SDR technology expands the capabilities of existing communication systems by allowing ad hoc networks that can grow or shrink, and include redundancy paths for greater resiliency. Traditional fixed networks required costly upgrades to change network configurations and limited redundancy. With increased dependence on SW and FW, the equipment requires costly and time intensive regression testing to ensure that the SW and FW can work on multiple configurations that can change in the field. Quintech helps address these development cost and integration challenges by reducing RF test costs and accelerating schedules with Quintech’s RF and Wireless Test solutions. Engineers have found they can achieve dramatically reduced test schedules and increase accuracy in RF link testing for mesh networks by using new advanced RF matrix switch test and measurement systems from Quintech. Quintech’s NEXUS RF matrix switches and Laboratory Automation and Management Platform, Q-LAAMP software solutions can dramatically increase wireless test lab efficiency. To test and validate new architectures and networks, designers and engineers require test systems that can be easily configured and controlled to create and test scenarios that emulate free space in a controlled environment, which is exactly what NEXUS offers. GMC: Cybersecurity is becoming ever more important within the wireless communications sphere, particularly within government and military fields. What steps do you think need to be taken to ensure communications remain secure? Frank Elling: Quintech’s expertise and products are focused on the hardware equipment used to route the RF communications signals. We are seeing the industry move

toward SDR that allow public safety officers to switch to noncommercial channels to stay in communication while they jam the commercial signals. SDRs are also being deployed in the low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations, which includes mesh/beam-hopping, or satellite-to-satellite, communications. The use of SDRs and beam-hopping results in a more secure communications network as the number of access points to the RF signals are reduced. Successful deployment of this new technology is important for creating more secure networks. Quintech provides a NEXUS mesh matrix switch that is used by equipment manufacturers to speed up their development cycles and allow them to test a large number of network configurations to ensure the resiliency of the hardware and software. GMC: What do you expect Quintech to achieve in 2018? Frank Elling: Quintech expects 2018 to be a breakout year for several of our existing and soon to be released products. With industry emphasis on size, weight and power (SWAP), and the need to improve cyber security industry wide, Quintech’s products will see increased use to help solve these issues. Quintech has used the last three years to improve not only SWAP, but also enhanced controls and additional features. One of these features allows the user to adjust gain and attenuation at the inputs and outputs to software define certain RF specifications to optimize what is most important for the customer’s application. The Built-In Self-Test (BIST) and ‘smart’ control will tell the user exactly what the performance of certain specifications are, e.g. noise figure, P1dB and gain. Quintech sees several opportunities that have been developing over years will come to fruition in 2018. Due to the increased demand for data, launching of LEO, MEO and GEO satellites will proliferate and cause the increased need for satellite Earth stations for uplink, downlink and tracking, telemetry and control. Quintech is excited and looking forward to supporting our customers with their RF signal management requirements in 2018. Quintech products are used extensively in commercial and government platforms for a multitude of functions. We will continue to view our role in the telecommunications industry as one of opportunity to provide world class product solutions for our worldwide customer base. GMC

Image courtesy of Quintech

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Modernization sets stage for leap in analytics Technology is a wonderful thing. The possibilities seem endless today as to what we can do with it, and that’s just from a consumer perspective. Within the military, technology has made futuristic applications a reality, but legacy systems have now become a significant problem when it comes to interoperability and data extraction. Here, Steve Bennett, Director of SAS’ Global Government Practice and the former Director of the National Biosurveillance Integration Center within the Department of Homeland Security, outlines the challenge.

My generation was the first to grow up with in-home video game systems. While I pretty much wore out my Atari 2600, the device that really got most of my time was my 8-bit Nintendo. When my dad was cleaning out the attic recently, he discovered and dusted off that machine, stuck it in a box, and sent it to me. I couldn’t wait to fire it up and see if I could still beat ‘Super Mario Brothers’ in record time. There was just one problem: I couldn’t find a single TV in my house that would connect to the Nintendo’s 1980s analog video output. Defense organizations have a lot of ‘Nintendos’ they are working hard to modernize. But for them, it’s more than just replacing Nintendos with modern systems. As defense organizations undertake IT modernization efforts, they should not settle for simply upgrading or replacing outdated legacy systems. Ultimately, their most important assets are not the systems or networks that are deployed, but the data and associated services that are delivered. Department of Defense (DoD) leaders understand this. The first guiding principle of the Army Data Strategy, for example, is that ‘data are an enterprise asset, information is enterprise currency, and knowledge is an enterprise resource.’ The military services and their supporting organizations have more data - and more diversity in data - than any other industry, with the ability to tap into both traditional information systems in garrison and networked platforms on land, in air and at sea. In most organizations, however, the value of data as an enterprise asset is limited by outdated or de facto information architectures that keeps the data bottled up in legacy silos. A modernization initiative presents a unique opportunity to break down these silos and take an enterprise approach to data. From the outset, organizations should develop modernization plans with the express intent of leveraging data to achieve operational and strategic goals. Untapped potential The shortcomings of current defense IT environments are well recognized. DoD organizations might have a wealth of data at their disposal, but often they are not realizing its full value. “Despite the importance of data, general consensus exists among government officials and analysts that DOD does not sufficiently incorporate data into decision-making,” according to a January 2016 report from the Congressional Research Service. “Many major policy decisions - from economic development programs in Afghanistan to choosing the weapon systems of the future - are made without the benefit of substantive data.” The problem is that ‘substance’ is not just a matter of volume. If data is scattered across multiple systems, with no cohesive framework for integrating, managing and analyzing it, its overall volume is meaningless. This situation reflects the grassroots way in which the use

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of analytics has arisen in defense organizations. Typically, individual offices have launched initiatives to meet the requirements of their specific programs, without reference to a common set of standards, processes or architecture. Early on, this wasn’t a problem. But as organizations have become more savvy consumers of data, they have recognized the value of integrating and managing data at the enterprise level to gain new insights that no individual dataset could provide. Unfortunately, the patchwork-like architecture of most defense IT environments makes it difficult to gain that enterprise perspective.

Extracting value Defense organizations can use the modernization process to address these problems. But it requires a change in thinking. Rather than seeing data as a technical asset, organizations should view it as a strategic asset—and develop an IT strategy for extracting value from that data. The foundation of that strategy is an enterprise data management framework to which individual offices can map their individual systems, creating a cohesive environment in which different users and applications can leverage the same data—what the Army Data Strategy describes as ‘many-to-many data exchange.’ This framework also accelerates the process for deploying new, innovative solutions, according to the Navy. “Instead of waiting until a requirement arises to determine what we have and how to implement our new idea, good data management would complete the necessary hard work ahead of time,” states the Navy’s ‘Strategy for Data and Analytics Optimization,’ released in September 2017. In the same vein, defense agencies should create a single, cohesive environment for analytics. Whatever tools are deployed, they should work seamlessly with open source technology, making it easier for analysts or systems to integrate data across different toolsets and data types. Analytic solutions also should work with any infrastructure, whether in the cloud, on-premise or in a hybrid environment. The goal is to remove the obstacles to data in an organization - to make it as easy as possible for analysts to access, analyze and collaborate on data, wherever it might reside in an organization. Data-driven decision-making The ultimate goal, of course, is to leverage data in the decisionmaking process at all levels of an organization—to foster the development of a data-driven decision-making culture. In a March 2016 report, the Air Force describes data science

Steve Bennett, Director of SAS’ Global Government Practice


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as providing a ‘decision-advantage’ in the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) space. The problem is that at present, only a limited number of airmen are trained in the principles of big data and analytics. The report, developed by the Deputy Chief of Staff for ISR, recommends incorporating data science into a broader range of training and education objectives. The idea is not to turn every analyst into a data scientist, but to ensure that ISR professionals at all levels can “understand and wield the capabilities that data scientists bring to the flight,” the report states. Lawmakers also are looking to improve the data competency of DoD decision-makers. The Congressional Research Service found that even when data is available, decisions are often driven by perceptions or anecdotal evidence, not data analysis. Acquisition is of particular concern. A provision of the Senate’s version of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act calls for DoD leaders to develop a “consistent policy as to the role of data analytics in establishing budgets and making major milestone decisions.” Additionally, the department would be required to consider how data analytics might be included in acquisition-related curriculum taught at the National Defense University, the Defense Acquisition University and other institutions. For current initiatives to succeed, according to the Congressional Research Service report, “there must be a culture within DOD that not only values using data to drive decisions, but also integrates data gathering and analysis into the very fabric of the organization.” IT modernization is one vehicle for making that vision achievable. But that will happen only if DoD leaders seize the opportunity and begin to think in new ways about the IT enterprise. Are they happy with simply upgrading their old Nintendos, or are they looking to change the game? The opportunity is here. DoD organizations have an abundance of data. They also have access to a new generation of analytic tools that make data accessible to a broad range of users. The task now is to develop a modern information architecture that helps DoD leverage those capabilities to meet GMC their key strategic and operational goals.

Defense use cases for analytics Throughout the Defense Department, the military services and supporting agencies are making the case for a deeper investment in data analytics. Here is a sampling of applications currently envisioned or in development. Army pre-positioned stock Analytics is key to strengthening the Army’s ability to equip soldiers quickly and effectively. A new capability being developed will provide for automated deployment of Brigade-set equipment in less than 96 hours, according to the Army PEO Enterprise Information Systems office. Smart buildings DoD leaders are taking a serious interest in the concept of the Internet of Things - that is, systems that gather and analyze data generated by networked devices in the field. One promising application, according to a December 2016 report from the DOD CIO, is the development of ‘smart buildings’ that are equipped with countless sensors that can be used to reduce energy use, improve safety and provide real-time, automated management of key functions. Mental health readiness In the current draft of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, Congress directs the department to study the feasibility of using predictive analytics to identify mental health risk and provide targeted intervention for part-time members of the reserve components. Such measures could improve the overall readiness of reserve forces. Assessing supplier solvency For years, DoD agencies have used analytics to fine-tune the supply chain - to better align supply shipments with requirements in the field. But what happens if a supplier goes out of business? The Air Force’s 448th Supply Chain Management Wing is using analytics to study the financial health of suppliers and anticipate potential problems. Defense Travel System modernization DoD leaders plan to make analytics a core component of an upcoming initiative to modernize the Defense Travel System. The initiative calls for an integrated business intelligence capability - including dashboards, scorecards and other analytic tools - to maximize visibility into defense travel spending. This reflects the depar tment’s commitment to evidence-based decision-making, according to a recent presentation by the Defense Travel Management Office.


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C-band Pass Filter

Improving your signal and mitigating downlink adjacent satellite interference effects in ground satellite terminals Satellite interference is hard to avoid, especially when it is prolific throughout the industry. According to a survey conducted by the Satellite Interference Reduction Group (IRG), 93 percent of the satellite industry suffers from some type of satellite interference. Brian Donnelly, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Norsat, outlines the challenges of downlink adjacent satellite interference in ground satellite terminals, and details how the effects can be mitigated. Interference is caused by unwanted signals that interrupt the reception of radio waves. It can be produced within the same satellite systems, from other satellite systems using the same frequencies, or from ground-based sources such as overhead power lines, conflicting microwave transmitters, or from WiFi/ WiMax sources. Since interference is caused by so many different sources, it can be difficult to get to the root of the problem. Satellite interference can be categorized into specific groups including adjacent channel interference, crosspolarization interference, deliberate interference, and adjacent satellite interference. •

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Adjacent channel interference is caused by unsolicited signals in an adjacent channel, often the result of an error from the operator. Cross-polarization interference is caused when the antenna is not peaked properly, and/or the polarization is incorrectly set-up.

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• •

Deliberate interference involves hostile attempts to disrupt service and is the unauthorized use of bandwidth. Adjacent satellite interference is often caused from user error and affects ground satellite terminals nearby. Adjacent satellite interference is categorized into downlink and uplink interference.

According to the IRG, interference can be caused by human error, bad installation, lack of training, poor equipment or system design, and a lack of adherence to industry standards and guidelines. Due to the multitude and range of interference types, this article will focus specifically on downlink adjacent satellite interference and the mitigation tools available for ground satellite terminals. Adjacent satellite interference is on the rise as more satellites are deployed. According to Euroconsult’s ‘Satellites to be Built and Launched by 2020, World Market Survey,’ 51 percent more satellites will be built for launch from 2011-2020 than in the


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previous decade. The satellite industry is geared for exceptional growth which means more capacity, more users, more services, and ultimately, more challenges involving satellite interference. In some cases, satellites are deployed so closely together that only two degrees separate them from the neighbouring satellite. As such, adjacent satellite interference is most likely accidental and is caused by user-error or incorrect equipment choice/setup such as having a non-compliant antenna or transmitting at higher powers than allowed. What is Downlink Adjacent Satellite Interference? Downlink adjacent satellite interference occurs when the receiving ground satellite terminal receives unwanted signals from neighbouring satellites. When it comes to military users, satellite operators say adjacent satellite interference is one of the biggest problem areas. This interference causes issues with satellite service providers and may prevent the satellite terminal from working correctly. Though interference is attributed to numerous factors, there are specific technologies and techniques that can help mitigate interference, providing safer and error-free communications. How to avoid Downlink Adjacent Satellite Interference in ground satellite terminals There are many ways to mitigate downlink adjacent satellite interference such as pointing the antenna accurately, using appropriately-sized ground satellite terminals, and properly setting up the low noise block downconverter (LNB). User-error interference such as incorrect antenna pointing, and misconfiguration can be mitigated with the following techniques and technologies. Proper antenna pointing: Manual Proper antenna pointing starts with the setup location of the satellite terminal. To ensure the antenna is pointed properly, the user should set the satellite terminal on a stable and level terrain, confirming a clear line of sight. Some satellite terminals, such as Norsat’s GLOBETrekker, offer auto-levelling capabilities so that it can be used on rugged terrain and uneven ground. As well, the satellite terminal should avoid electromagnetic interferences such as overhead power lines, cellular towers, or microwave transmitters. Wind and other environmental factors should be considered as they may cause vibration or other antenna movement. Also, accessories are available to help ease the process of satellite acquisition and includes devices such as spectrum analyzers, GPS devices, compasses, and narrow band receivers. Norsat’s Satellite Acquisition Assistant (SAA) is also an option, as it offers these devices and an inclinometer, DVB receiver,

Photo courtesy of Norsat

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and the intuitive LinkControl software, packaged in a handy toolkit for quick and accurate satellite acquisition. Proper antenna pointing: Automatic The auto-acquisition process ensures terminal alignment is accurate, consistent, and simple, minimizing the technical expertise required in the field. Auto-acquisition algorithms activate the motors in an auto-acquire terminal to point the antenna at the appropriate satellite. Most auto-acquire terminals include peaking of azimuth and elevation and some include polarization peaking. Auto-acquire software is typically easyto-learn, and can decrease the chance of incorrect antenna pointing. An example of this is Norsat’s LinkControl software that offers a step-by-step guide to aid the user through the satellite acquisition process while offering troubleshooting tools to reduce the likelihood of interference. LinkControl also has LinkProfiles which are preconfigured settings that allow operators easy satellite acquisition and transmission. Autoacquire software reduces training time and allows users to more accurately point antennas without interfering with adjacent satellites. Correctly-sized and configured satellite communications equipment Choosing appropriately-sized terminals, antennas, and components will help with the signal quality that is being sent and received. Using an antenna that is too small will increase the chances of sidelobes and adjacent channel interference. As well, configuring components incorrectly will also affect signal quality and produce interference. A wrongly configured low noise block downconverter (LNB) or a block upconverter (BUC) with too much power can cause adjacent satellite interference and disrupt users nearby. A high noise figure in these devices can also lead to poor signal quality. Using integrated bandpass filters to Improve your signal Integrated or discrete bandpass filters are commonly used in or with LNBs to remove sources of interference, especially in Cband. If the spurious signals are not removed, they can cause problems within the LNB, such as intermodulation, or in some cases, saturation. In the worst case, an LNB can be permanently damaged by strong spurious signals. Simple filters often have inadequate performance, while more complex filters become too difficult to specify, fabricate, and/or tune. A good filter is built with numerous stringent filter requirements to separate channels or to block adjacent bands. These filters require a broad passband with low insertion loss, steep skirts that roll off quickly, and high stopband rejection. Ideally, the filter would have close to zero dB loss over a broad passband and more than 80 dB of stopband rejection. Advanced filter design techniques have been developed to meet these requirements. For instance, elliptical filters allow for the adjustment of both the passband ripple and stopband attenuation as a means of decreasing the transition bandwidth. Chebyshev filters have steeper skirts at the cost of some ripple in the passband loss. There are many bandpass filters available on the market and in different frequency bands. Consider bandpass filters as an additional method to minimize signal interference (noise). Conclusion Satellite interference continues to be an issue in the industry despite the many technologies available on the market to help mitigate this problem. The sources of the interference are often difficult to identify and require time, money, and resources to resolve. With the exponential growth of the satellite industry, interferences are expected to increase, and end users will need more training and options on how to reduce interference to ensure a quality signal. Educating users on how to select and properly use ground satellite communication equipment will GMC provide clearer signals for all satellite users.


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