Evolution of High Throughput Satellite Systems: Vision, Requirements, and Key Technologies

TL;DR

This paper reviews high throughput satellite systems, their technological advancements, and standardization efforts, and envisions extremely-HTS systems with autonomous capabilities to meet future 6G network demands.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of current HTS technologies and introduces the concept and architecture of next-generation extremely-HTS systems for future networks.

Findings

HTS systems are key enablers for 6G networks.

Emerging technologies include beamforming and reconfigurable phased arrays.

Proposed EHTS systems aim to maximize spectrum reuse and capacity.

Abstract

High throughput satellites (HTS), with their digital payload technology, are expected to play a key role as enablers of the upcoming 6G networks. HTS are mainly designed to provide higher data rates and capacities. Fueled by technological advancements including beamforming, advanced modulation techniques, reconfigurable phased array technologies, and electronically steerable antennas, HTS have emerged as a fundamental component for future network generation. This paper offers a comprehensive state-of-the-art of HTS systems, with a focus on standardization, patents, channel multiple access techniques, routing, load balancing, and the role of software-defined networking (SDN). In addition, we provide a vision for next-satellite systems that we named as extremely-HTS (EHTS) toward autonomous satellites supported by the main requirements and key technologies expected for these systems. The EHTS system will be designed such that it maximizes spectrum reuse and data rates, and flexibly steers the capacity to satisfy user demand. We introduce a novel architecture for future regenerative payloads while summarizing the challenges imposed by this architecture.