ECONOMICS

The CSIRO MultiBeam antenna was awarded the 2004 Industry Innovators Award of the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) for technology developed by the public sector. The MultiBeam is a radical breakthrough in antenna design which simultaneously communicates with up to 20 satellites - compared with one antenna for one satellite in conventional systems. As a result, the MultiBeam contributes to greatly reducing the visual impact of conventional antenna arrays. SSPI is an international nonprofit body committed to the professional development of the satellite industry, through education, networking and award programs celebrating outstanding achievement. Its members include such luminaries as Arthur C Clarke, science fiction writer and inventor of the concept of geostationary satellites, and James Van Allen, after whom the 'Van Allen Belt' is named. Its board is a who's who of the communications industry, including senior representatives of IntelSat, SES Americom, New Skies, Boeing, CBS and ABC. In accepting the award, Dr Trevor Bird of the CSIRO ICT Centre said that the MultiBeam antenna demonstrates how innovative Australian design and engineering excellence have been combined to deliver a world-first. "The technology has the capacity to be an Earth-based switch between satellites and cable in the ground to deliver a broad range of wideband and high-speed data applications," said Dr Bird. Developed by a team led by Dr Bird, the MultiBeam antenna system is a significant breakthrough in ground station technology that brings much greater flexibility to satellite communications. A single MultiBeam antenna is capable of simultaneously transmitting and receiving to up to 20 satellites in different frequencies, within a 38 degree coverage of the geostationary arc. This means that one to three MultiBeams can replace whole arrays of conventional antennas, each of which currently needs to point to a separate satellite. The MultiBeam antenna technology addresses a significant challenge facing operators and users of teleports and ground stations. The growth of the Internet, two-way data applications and customer requirements for multiple bands and operational flexibility are beyond the capacity of many conventional teleports. The CSIRO research effort has been directed at enabling future ground stations to be extremely cost competitive and to be able to establish and reliably manage a diverse range of services at short notice. MultiBeam antennas will allow teleport operators to significantly reduce capital and expansion costs and to connect new services within one hour. This greatly increases their ability to take on 'occasional use' traffic like major sporting events or breaking news events. The space required for teleports can also be significantly reduced meaning new types of locations, such as city rooftops, can become practical. Direct users of the services provided by satellite ground stations typically include broadcasters, 'intelligent buildings', corporations with widespread private networks, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), carriers, government bodies and defence agencies. These will benefit from cost-effective alternatives to fibre for high bandwidth applications and the availability of 'bandwidth on demand' in remote and rural regions. Urgent or 'occasional use' requirements are better supported by the MultiBeam system and operators will be able to respond more quickly to user needs. Satellite users such as broadcasters, ISPs and carriers will also be able to better respond to their own customers needs. Overall, the MultiBeam will assist the satellite communications industry to compete more effectively with terrestrial solutions for broadband, interactive and occasional use services. Three MultiBeam antennas have been operating successfully at SES Astra's satellite control facilities in Betzdorf, Luxembourg, since October 2001. Their coverage has been expanded to the equivalent workload of 20 conventional antennas across 110 degrees of the geostationary arc. The technology's development has also been supported by TST of Germany, SES-Astra of Luxembourg, Sydney Engineering, the Australian Department of Defence, Eutelsat and Intelsat at various stages of its development. The MultiBeam technology was a finalist in the ATS Investment Ready Awards last year and received highly commended awards from Engineers Australia, Sydney Division for Engineering Excellence. Commercialisation discussions are now underway with prospective industry partners and investors in the USA, Europe, Asia and Australasia.