Verification tests of a prototype Intelsat TDMA/DSI terminal

The Intelsat 120-Mbit/s TDMA/DSI Traffic Terminal Specification BG-42-65 was approved by the Intelsat Board of Governors in 1981; implementation plans call for operational services to commence in early 1984. COMSAT Laboratories has developed a laboratory model of the 120-Mbit/s traffic terminal. In addition, Intelsat has awarded COMSAT Laboratories a contract to develop a reference station emulator (RSE) for verifying the traffic terminal operation. The first part of this paper describes a field test conducted by COMSAT Laboratories which provided an early look at this new system at an Intelsat Standard-A earth station. The second part describes the verification testing of a traffic terminal using the RSE. The architecture and capabilities of the RSE are described, along with example programs used for verifying traffic terminal operation.