Generalized control and networking for EHF satellite communication systems

Provisions for control of an EHF satellite communications system to service a large community of users employing small mobile terminals are proposed. The control flow is provided using the same high gain uplink and downlink antenna beams and on-board signal processing in the space segment that are used in providing communications service. An efficient use of these satellite resources for communications can be achieved with resource sharing techniques implemented through access control and network control. Control channels are described which provide the necessary control information flow between system users and the controllers. Although the control channels are simple in structure, they remain flexible enough to implement a variety of control protocols suited to the operational requirements of different user communities. This flexibility derives from the on-board signal processing in the EHF satellite communications system.