JPH0879183A - Optical communication equipment between ground machine and space machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To perform stable optical communication between a ground machine and a space machine by mounting an optical transmission/reception part for optical communication with the space machine on a flying device fixedly staying in the stratosphere where there are no factors like cloud or mist to attenuate the light. CONSTITUTION: A stabilizing device consists of a small-sized balloon, a power source, and a stabilizer consisting of a propulsion device like a propeller. By the design of this stabilizer and a cable length adjustment device which is provided in a ground transmission/reception part 11 and consists of a cable take-up mechanism or the like, an optical fiber part 21 is so constituted that it is not much drifted by a strong wind like the preveiling westerlies. The signal from the ground transmission/reception part 11 on the ground is transmitted to an optical transmission part 5 on the balloon 1 through the optical fiber part 21 and reaches the space machine in the very stable state without being affected by cloud, mist, or the like at all. The laser signal light from the space machine is stably received by the optical transmission/reception part 5 of the balloon 1 in the same manner.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a ground-based laser light used for cooperative communication between a spacecraft such as an artificial satellite and the ground.
The present invention relates to an optical communication device between spacecraft.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In various spacecraft such as artificial satellites and space stations, it is important to cooperate with each other in terms of operation. Therefore, in terms of communication as well, cooperative communication between these spacecraft is required. Has been done. Conventionally,
Such cooperative communication between spacecraft is performed using radio waves. However, as the activities in space such as earth observation satellites and space stations increase, the amount of information to be transmitted between spacecraft also increases dramatically, and the data signal rate is required to be about 1 to 10 Gbps. However, the conventional radio-wave communication system has already reached a practical limit due to the problem of frequency allocation for preventing interference, the antenna aperture, the transmission output limit, and the like. Therefore, an optical communication system using laser light has been attracting attention, and an optical communication system between spacecrafts is regarded as promising especially in outer space that is not affected by the atmosphere.

When an optical communication system using laser light is used for cooperative communication between spacecraft, it is convenient to use an optical communication system using laser light for cooperative communication between the spacecraft and the ground. However, when communication between the spacecraft and the ground is performed using laser light, no matter what kind of high-performance telescope or the like is installed in the transmitting / receiving unit, a cloud, In the presence of fog, the laser light is significantly absorbed, scattered, or reflected, so the optical signal is greatly attenuated, and the atmosphere itself also refracts, scatters, and attenuates the light between them. Communication becomes impossible.

Therefore, when performing satellite-to-ground communication using laser light, the ground station is located in a region such as a desert where the sky ratio is extremely high, and in order to reduce the influence of the atmosphere as much as possible, the top of a high mountain or the like. Must be installed in the highlands of.

[0005]

However, Japan is an extremely rainy country, and there is no place that meets the above conditions. There are places overseas that are suitable for this condition, but if you install a ground station overseas to communicate with the satellite, you must secure the communication means between the overseas ground station and the base station in Japan. I have to. Since optical communication is introduced for the purpose of increasing the transmission rate, it is necessary to secure a large-capacity communication route between the overseas ground station and the Japanese domestic base station, which will be extremely expensive. .
Therefore, if the ground station cannot be installed in any place in Japan by some means, the optical communication system using the laser beam cannot be a practical communication means.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems in the case of applying the optical communication system using laser light to the coordinated communication between a spacecraft such as an artificial satellite and the ground, and is subject to meteorological conditions such as rainfall. It is an object of the present invention to provide a terrestrial / spacecraft optical communication device capable of performing stable optical communication using laser light even in an area not suitable for optical communication.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a ground-to-spacecraft optical communication using laser light for communication between a spacecraft such as an artificial satellite and the ground. In the device, an optical transceiver for performing optical communication with a spacecraft by a laser beam is mounted on a stationary flight means such as a balloon that has been detained in the stratosphere, and the optical transceiver and the ground transceiver are formed by an optical fiber unit. It is configured to connect and perform fiber communication.

As described above, in the stratosphere where the stationary flight means such as a balloon equipped with the optical transceiver for optical communication with the spacecraft is installed, the weather is extremely stable and the laser light such as clouds and fog is greatly attenuated. Since there is no factor that causes it, a stable optical communication line can be realized between the spacecraft and the ground at an arbitrary location, which enables large-capacity space communication.

[0009]

EXAMPLES Next, examples will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of an optical communication device between ground and spacecraft according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 is a balloon, which is fixed in the stratosphere at a stable altitude of 10,000 m or higher in the atmospheric condition, and has a solar cell 2 for power supply, stabilizers 3 and 4 for stabilizing position and attitude, and The optical transceiver 5 is provided for performing optical communication with a spacecraft by laser light. In order to fix the balloon 1 in the stratosphere by mounting the solar cell 2, the stabilizers 3, 4 and the optical transmitter / receiver 5, 250 kg
It requires a levitation force (75 kg for a set of optical transceiver and 175 kg for a structural system such as a solar cell and a stabilizer), but this levitation force can be realized with a He balloon having a diameter of about 16 m. .

Reference numeral 11 denotes a ground transmitter / receiver installed on the ground 12, and the ground transmitter / receiver 11 and the optical transmitter / receiver 5 mounted on the balloon 1.
The optical transmission / reception unit 5 and the terrestrial transmission / reception unit 11 are connected to each other by fiber communication. The optical fiber unit 21 is provided with a large number of stabilizers 22 to 26, and each stabilizer is composed of a small balloon and a stabilizer composed of a power source and a propelling machine such as a propeller. And a cable length adjusting device (not shown) such as a cable winding mechanism provided in the terrestrial transmitter / receiver 11 can prevent the optical fiber portion 21 from largely flowing even by strong wind such as westerly wind. . In the figure, 31 is a cloud and 32 is a fog.

In the terrestrial-to-spacecraft optical communication device configured as described above, the signal from the terrestrial transceiver unit 11 installed on the ground is the optical transceiver unit mounted on the balloon 1 via the optical fiber unit 21. The laser signal light is transmitted to the spacecraft again from the optical transmission / reception unit 5, and can be made to reach the spacecraft in an extremely stable state without being affected by clouds, fog or the like. Similarly, the laser signal light from the spacecraft is also received by the optical transmitter / receiver 5 mounted on the balloon 1 and transmitted to the terrestrial optical transmitter / receiver 11 via the optical fiber portion 21 to be received in a stable state. You can

[0012]

As described above on the basis of the embodiments,
According to the present invention, an optical transceiver unit for performing optical communication with a spacecraft is mounted on a flight means that is fixed in the stratosphere where there is no factor for attenuating light such as clouds and fog, and the optical transceiver unit and the ground transceiver unit. Since the optical fiber section is used to communicate with the spacecraft, it is possible to realize an optical communication line with stable laser light between the ground and spacecraft at any place, enabling a large-capacity space communication. And so on.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an optical communication device between ground and spacecraft according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Balloon 2 Solar Cell 3, 4 Stabilizer 5 Optical Transmitter / Receiver 11 Terrestrial Transmitter / Receiver 12 Terrestrial 21 Optical Fiber 22 to 26 Stabilizer

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A terrestrial-to-spacecraft optical communication device using laser light for performing communication between a spacecraft such as an artificial satellite and the ground, an optical transceiver unit for performing optical communication with the spacecraft by laser light, It is mounted on a stationary flight means such as a balloon that has been detained in the stratosphere, and the optical transmitter / receiver and the ground transmitter / receiver are connected by an optical fiber unit to perform fiber communication. Optical communication device between spacecraft 2. The terrestrial / spacecraft light according to claim 1, wherein the stationary flight means includes a solar cell for supplying electric power and a stabilizer for stabilizing the position and attitude. Communication device. 3. The terrestrial / spacecraft optical communication device according to claim 1, wherein the optical fiber portion includes a stabilizer including a balloon, a power source, and a stabilizer.