Data from the Boston Consulting Group predicts the space economy to grow from $416 million in 2020 to more than $1 trillion by 2040. Of that total, the largest portion will be operations and services — the solutions that companies on the ground can use to communicate with the satellites, also known as user terminals. This unprecedented growth in the market is driving the demand for new technologies for the terminals at lower price points with more capabilities. This technology is largely focused on flat panel antennas and more specifically active electronically scanned antennas (AESAs).
To reach consumer price points, the industry must leverage the cost reductions learned from Wi-Fi technology introduced in the early 2000s and apply it to satcom user terminals. AESAs utilizing silicon mmWave ICs have emerged as the technology that can achieve the delicate balance of cost and performance. Silicon ICs used in phase array antenna designs offer high performance, application flexibility and ease of integration, high energy efficiency and compelling economics.
Anokiwave provides silicon-based satcom ICs to enable phased array antenna user terminals with high performance, small form factor, and low cost. Anokiwave's ICs are designed to support frequency-division duplex, however they can also support time-division duplex operation covering global satcom Ku- and Ka-bands. Anokiwave’s latest ICs are the key enabling technology making electronic beam steering in flat panel active antennas for satcom user terminals commercially viable at both volume and cost points.
“Anokiwave’s customers have had great success implementing Anokiwave's beamforming ICs into their terminals,” stated Ryan Jennings, Anokiwave vice president of satcom and systems. “The ICs have been demonstrated in multiple live satellite links globally, in multiple applications, across multiple constellations and in multiple orbits. Their performance, cost-effectiveness, and availability in volume enables customers to design, build and deploy satcom systems with confidence.”
Anokiwave’s latest whitepaper includes an in-depth discussion of the satcom market drivers and solutions that will enable terminal manufacturers to transform how connectivity can be delivered with cost-effective user terminal solutions.