# US 11,309,958 B2 · Variable stayout distance for beamhopping satellite > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,309,958 B2 - Document ID: US11309958B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/729,870 - Filed: 2019-12-30 - Published: 2021-07-01 - Granted: 2022-04-19 - Earliest claimed: 2019-12-30 - Assignees: Hughes Network Systems, LLC - Applicants: Stanley Kay; Udaya Bhaskar; Neal David Becker - Inventors: Stanley Kay; Udaya Bhaskar; Neal David Becker - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11309958B2 ## CPC - H04B 7/18519: {Operations control, administration or maintenance} - H04B 7/2041: {Spot beam multiple access} - H04B 7/0617: {for beam forming} - H04B 7/18513: {Transmission in a satellite or space-based system} - H04B 7/18515: {Transmission equipment in satellites or space-based relays} - H04B: TRANSMISSION ## Abstract A system and method for scheduling a variable stayout distance when beam hopping, the method including providing an illumination area of a satellite and candidate beam centers disposed in the illumination area; measuring a respective scan angle from an antenna boresight to a respective beam center of the candidate beam centers; and determining a reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers, based on a proportion of the respective scan angle to a maximum scan angle. Each candidate beam center may be processed sequentially. Prior to adding each candidate beam center to a current beam center set, checking whether a candidate beam center meets the stayout distance criteria from all beam centers already in the beam center set. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A non-transient computer-readable storage medium having instructions embodied thereon, the instructions being executable by one or more processors to perform a method for scheduling a variable stayout distance when beam hopping, the method comprising: providing an illumination area of a satellite and candidate beam centers disposed in the illumination area; measuring a respective scan angle from an antenna boresight to a respective beam center of the candidate beam centers; determining a reuse factor k, for each of the candidate beam centers, based on a proportion of the respective scan angle to a maximum scan angle; and setting the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers by choosing either a next smallest reuse factor k1 or a next largest reuse factor k2 from a set of reuse factors based on a probability p. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the illumination area comprises imaginary cells superimposed on the illumination area, each cell has a cell center, and wherein each of the candidate beam centers comprises one of the cell centers. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method of claim 2, wherein the centers of the imaginary cells are restricted to a hexagonal lattice. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The method of claim 2 wherein the centers of the imaginary cells are not restricted to a hexagonal lattice. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein imaginary cells are substantially hexagonal in shape. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers is calculated as k = F ⁡ ( S ) = k ⁢ ⁢ min × ( 1 - ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α ) + k ⁢ ⁢ max × ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α with α being 2. ### Claim 7 A non-transient computer-readable storage medium having instructions embodied thereon, the instructions being executable by one or more processors to perform a method for scheduling a variable stayout distance when beam hopping, the method comprising: providing an illumination area of a satellite and candidate beam centers disposed in the illumination area; measuring a respective scan angle from an antenna boresight to a respective beam center of the candidate beam centers; determining a reuse factor k, for each of the candidate beam centers, based on a proportion of the respective scan angle to a maximum scan angle; and generating a current beam center set by sequentially adding a respective candidate beam center of the candidate beam centers when the respective candidate beam center is outside a respective reuse distance D from each of the candidate beam centers already in the current beam center set. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, wherein the candidate beam centers are ordered by a traffic metric associated with each of the candidate beam centers. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The method of claim 7, further comprising setting the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers by choosing either a next smallest stayout distance k1 or a next largest reuse factor k2 from a set of stayout distances based on a probability p, wherein the illumination area comprises substantially hexagonal imaginary cells superimposed on the illumination area, each cell has a cell center, and each of the candidate beam centers comprises one of the cell centers, and wherein the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers is calculated as k = F ⁡ ( S ) = k ⁢ ⁢ min × ( 1 - ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α ) + k ⁢ ⁢ max × ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α with α being 2. ### Claim 10 A beam forming system to schedule using a variable stayout distance when beam hopping, the system comprising: a satellite covering an illumination area and candidate beam centers disposed in the illumination area; and a stayout scheduler to measure a respective scan angle from an antenna boresight to a respective beam center of the candidate beam centers, and to determine a reuse factor k, for each of the candidate beam centers, based on a proportion of the respective scan angle to a maximum scan angle, wherein the stayout scheduler sets the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers by choosing either a next smallest reuse factor k1 or a next largest reuse factor k2 from a set of stayout distances based on a probability p. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The system of claim 10, wherein the illumination area comprises imaginary cells superimposed on the illumination area, each cell has a cell center, and wherein each of the candidate beam centers comprises one of the cell centers. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the centers of the imaginary cells are restricted to a hexagonal lattice. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein the centers of the imaginary cells are not restricted to a hexagonal lattice. ### Claim 14 (depends on 11) The system of claim 11, wherein imaginary cells are substantially hexagonal in shape. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The system of claim 10, wherein the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers is calculated as k = F ⁡ ( S ) = k ⁢ ⁢ min × ( 1 - ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α ) + k ⁢ ⁢ max × ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α with α being 2. ### Claim 16 (depends on 10) The system of claim 10, wherein the stayout scheduler generates a current beam center set by sequentially adding a respective candidate beam center of the candidate beam centers when the respective candidate beam center is outside a respective reuse distance D from each of the candidate beam centers already in the current beam center set. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the candidate beam centers are ordered by a traffic metric associated with each of the candidate beam centers. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the stayout scheduler sets the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers by choosing either a next smallest reuse factor k1 or a next largest reuse factor k2 from a set of stayout distances based on a probability p, wherein the illumination area comprises substantially hexagonal imaginary cells superimposed on the illumination area, each cell has a cell center, and each of the candidate beam centers comprises one of the cell centers, and wherein the reuse factor k for each of the candidate beam centers is calculated as k = F ⁡ ( S ) = k ⁢ ⁢ min × ( 1 - ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α ) + k ⁢ ⁢ max × ( S S ⁢ ⁢ max ) α with α being 2.