Duration: 18 months
This idea presents an innovative approach to bring satellite communication systems through the technical maturation and commercialization of a patented technology. Inspired by ESA patent PAT 701 [1], our endeavour aims to leverage the outcomes of the ESA ARTES project NOTES [15] on PD-NOMA to develop an advanced Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) system for the Forward Link (FL). The primary objective is to validate the proposed approach within commercially viable use cases, emphasizing performance improvements over OMA solutions. The technical maturation process involves analysing scenarios where NOMA on the FL excels, particularly in single-beam cases and in multi-beam with frequency reuse. This is followed by the design and assessment of NOMA techniques, including: - FL air-interface Modulation and Coding schemes (MODCODs) - receiver architectures based on Successive Interference Cancellation (SIC). - sensitivity analysis of the main impairments (e.g., non-linear distortions) Software development and integration into Software-Defined Radio (SDR)-based test beds culminate in overall final testing. Recent years see a rapid escalation in the wireless capacity requirements imposed by advanced multimedia applications (e.g. HD video), next-generation networks face challenges in terms of supporting large-scale heterogeneous data traffic. Commercialisation strategies will be developed to position the technology as a viable solution in the satellite communications market. Key elements will include market survey, strategic partnerships and regulatory compliance. The proposed maturation and commercialisation offer significant benefits, including enhanced spectral efficiency, improved user experience, optimized power allocation and competitive advantage. Beyond commercial benefits, social impacts include global connectivity (i.e. STICS), bridging the digital divide and enabling critical applications such as telemedicine and disaster response.
