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MOBILE RADIO NETWORK FOR nels", IEEE Journal on Selected Areas of Communica-
NATIONWIDE COMMUNICATIONS tion, Feb. 1987.
"Networked Meteor-Burst Data Communication" by
Inventors: Carlos V. Roberts, Falls Church, Va.; Kokjer et al, IEEE Nov. 1986,vol. 24, No. 11.
Chong K. Ong, Derwood; John G. "Meteor Burst Communications: Bits Per Burst Perfor-
Puente, Rockville, both of Md. mance Bounds" by Martin Abel, IEEE vol. Com. 34,
Assignee: M/A-COM, Inc., Burlington, Mass. No. 9, Sep. 1986.
Appl. No.: 35,791 Primary Examiner-Theodore M. Blum
Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Pollock, VandeSande &
Filed: Apr. 8, 1987 Priddy
Int. Cl.4 ................................................ G01S 3/02 1571 ABSTRACT
U.S. Cl. ....................................... 342/457; 455/54 A mobil radio communication network utilizing meteor
Field of Search .................. 342/457, 460;455/52, burst communication medium. A master station com-
455/54 municates with a plurality of mobile radio stations using
References Cited digital messaging. Each of the master stations generates
polling data sent over a plurality of sectors to identify
U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS mobile radio stations to which messages are to be trans-
3,714,650 1/1973 Fuller et al. ........................ 342/457 mitted. Messages for transmission are composed at the
4,112,421 9/1978 Freeny, Jr. ..........................342/457 master station, and when an acknowledgement is re-
4,144,496 3/1979 Cunningham et al. ............... 455/54 ceived in one of a plurality of receive sectors at the
4,685,149 8/1987 Smith et al. ........................... 455/56 master station from the polling command, the messages
OTHER PUBLICATIONS are subsequently transmitted. Transmission of a message
following receipt of an acknowledgement occurs only
Final Report, "Analysis of Meteor Burst Communica- over a transmit sector containing the received acknowl-
tions for Navy Strategic Applications" MCC Docu- edgement signal. Messages may be composed in each of
ment No. 797, Feb. 4, 1980. the mobile radio stations and sent digitally to the master
"Diversity Reception for Meteoric Communications" station which responds by sending an acknowledge-
by Ladd, IRE Transactions on Communications Sys- ment over the transmit sector which is coextensive with
tems, Jun. 1961. the receive sector having processed the acknowledge-
"Polarization Rotation in Meteor Burst Communication ment signal.
Systems", Radioscience, vol. 21,No. 3, May-Jun. 1986.
"Performance of Meteor-Burst Communication Chan- 18 Claims, 7 Drawing Sheets
SkyTel: This patent relates to our other Scribd-republished and -noted papers on use of forms of new
multistatic radar for determination of positions and trajectories of Meteor Burst Communications (MBC) plasma
trails, as a component of MBC GNSS-independent positioning nationwide and globally. Part of this patent
deals with several methods of using MBC for mobile receiver location, but there is no full description here of a
method (of techniques to achieve all components of the methods). SkyTel's investigation shows various
methods and techniques that apprear viable and very important to US industry, science and government, some
of which is indicated in SkyTel's MBC folder on Scribd.
Patent ~ u i4,1989
. Sheet 1 of 7
U.S.Patent ~id.4~989 Sheet 2 of 7 4,845,504
1 SYNC ADDRESS 1
INBOUND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
INBOUND MESSAGE
47
s START
SINGLE SECTOR
ADDITIONAL SECTORS
-
- U.S. Patent Jul. 4,1989 Sheet 5 of 7
DECODE
SIGNAL
72
RESTART
SCAN
73 \
e r RESTART
66
, ^3"ZR
(ALL SECTORS)
h
(AFFECTED
SECTOR)
TRANSMIT
MESSAGE
US. Patent ~ u i4,1989
. Sheet 6 of 7
&. mu.
U.S. Patent ~ u i4,1989
. Sheet 7 of 7
START]
103
I
f
LISTENS A
<
^ XMIT MSG
13' -- 1
ALERT
0PERA-m ''?bN~
SEND ALARM
PRINT
STORED MESSAGE
PRI NT
MSG A
I
^
sion to the various mobile radio units are composed at
MOBILE RADIO NETWORK FOR NATIONWIDE the master station. The messages are transmitted in a
COMMUNICATIONS . - ranee- for reflection from a meteor trail. The
freauencv
transmit station includes a circular array of individual
BACKGROUND O F THE INVENTION 5 transmit sector antennas which provide 360Â of azimuth
The present invention relates to the mobile radio art. -
coverage.
Specifically, a communication network is described for A receiving antenna array is provided at each master
a mobile radio service utilizing meteor bursts as a com- station which provides for 3W of azimuth coverage for
munication medium. detecting incoming signals. The receive array com-
Mobile radio networks are commonly found in public lo prises a plurality of antennas generally spaced among
use. Generally, such systems cover small geographic the transmit antennas in the circular array providing a
areas utilizing VHF frequency communications. In plurality of receive sectors which can be monitored for
order to extend the range of these geographically lim- incoming messages. The combined receive sectors pro-
ited systems, complex interconnections between base ie vide receive coverage coextensive with the transmit
stations are provided by microwave link, satellite link coverage of the combined transmit sectors.
or other dedicated services. A unique protocol is provided for transmitting and
It has been known in the past to utilize the reflective
capabilities of meteor bursts for communicating from receiving messages between a mobile and master sta-
point to point. Meteor burst communication systems are tion. When a master station has a message to send, it will
based on the use of meteor trails which are generated 20 initiate a polling message in each of the transmit sectors,
when particles enter the earth's atmosphere and ionize a identifying .by address one or more stations to which
path over which the meteors travel. These trails are communication is desired.
typically 50-75 miles above the earth's surface. Radio Upon receipt of a recognizable polling address be-
frequencies in the frequency range of 40-50 megahertz longing to a mobile station, the mobile station will initi-
are reliably reflected from these ionized trails. As a 25 ate an acknowledgement on a fixed frequency different
result of the height of these trails, over the horizon from the master station transmit frequency. The master
communications at distances up to 1200 miles become station, upon receipt of the acknowledgement, will
practical. immediately transmit the outbound message.
High speed meteor burst digital communications The master station receive and transmit antenna ar-
have been realized between fixed points by various 30 rays are operated to note the sector from which an
government agencies. One such system for collecting incoming message is being received, and to transmit on
meteorological data is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. a sector which is known to contain the mobile station
4,277,845 and 4,630,314. The described digital commu- for which a message is destined.
nication system is used for sending meteorological data
35 Messages originated from a mobile unit are composed
from remote locations to a central data collection point.
A major system limitation is imposed by the fact that, at the mobile unit. The mobile unit will listen to the
although billions of meteor trails are created every day, frame of data being sent from the master station. When
their duration in time is usually from a few milliseconds the mobile unit detects a master station transmission, the
to a few seconds. This means that the viability of the mobile unit responds with its message transmission.
reflective ionized trail lasts for a brief moment in which 40 Collisions between simultaneous transmissions of two
the data packet must be sent from a distant transmitter. mobile stations are avoided with the selective antenna
The present invention provides a nationwide commu- receive pattern at the master station. If two simulta-
nications network for amobile radio service utilizing neous mobile transmissions are received in the same
the propagating capabilities of meteor bursts. A specific receive sector, the master station will not acknowledge
protocol has been designed for the communications 45 any message containing errors as a result of the collision
system, as well as a specialized transmit-receive base between
... simultaneous transmissions.
~-~~ - - ~
station facility to avoid the limitation imposed by the if the master station hears the transmitted signal it
brief duration of the ionized meteor trail. will decode the message,
- and if validated as having- been
SUMMARY O F THE INVENTION correctly received after appropriate error correction,
50 an acknowledgement will be sent by the master station,
It is an object of this invention to provide a nation- acknowledging receipt of the message.
wide mobile radio data service.
It is a more specific object of this invention to provide DESCRIPTION O F T H E FIGURES
a mobile digital radio service utilizing the reflective FIG. 1 is an overall block diagram of the master
capabilities of meteor trails.
station in the network.
These and other objects are provided by at least one
FIG. 2 is an illustration of the transmit and receive
master station and a plurality of mobile radio stations
which communicate over brief meteor bursts occurring lobes generated at the master station.
in the upper atmosphere. Utilizing two master stations, FIG. 3 is an illustration of the various message proto-
an entire area the size of the continental United States cols exchanged between the master and mobile stations.
may be covered, permitting mobile communication FIG. 4 illustrates the beam scanning technique for
from anywhere in the United States to one of the two scanning each sector received beam in azimuth and
master stations. elevation.
Each of the master stations includes a unique transmit FIGS. SA and SB are flow charts illustrating the
station which can transmit either a polling data message operation of the system under control of the host com-
or an information message in any of a of in&- puter for each of the transmit and receive sectors.
vidual azimuth sectors permitting transmission in any FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a transceiver for commu-
direction from a master station. Messages for transmis- nicating with a base station.
Attest: