Traffic performance of integrated satellite-terrestrial mobile network

Abstract

The traffic performance of integrated cellular mobile and satellite networks is analyzed. Using a previously proposed traffic model for a hierarchical architecture, a parametric analysis is carried out in the ranges of interest for application scenarios of satellite systems under development (e.g. Iridium and Globalstar). In particular, the effect of the following parameters is considered for some constellations: (a) the ratio between the highest and the lowest value of the spatial traffic density in the area covered by a satellite spot; and (b) the percentage of the satellite spot area covered also by the underlying terrestrial cellular networks. A traffic capacity estimation is carried out for the generic satellite spot, using channel reservation (guard channels) for those users who directly access the satellite. Moreover, an improved traffic model is presented, which accounts for frequent inter-spot handovers in low Earth orbit satellite systems.