Overlaying spread-spectrum satellite system and method

A spread-spectrum satellite paging system for communicating data in a same geographical region as covered by a mobile-satellite system, with the mobile-satellite system having a mobile bandwidth divided into a plurality of mobile channels separated by a plurality of guard bands, respectively, and having mobile-satellite users communicating on the plurality of mobile channels, said spread-spectrum satellite paging system overlaying in spectrum the mobile bandwidth, said spread-spectrum satellite paging system comprising:

• a satellite for communicating data across at least part of the mobile bandwidth, simultaneously and non-interferingly with a transmission from said mobile-satellite system on the same part of the mobile bandwidth;
• and
• a plurality of remote units, located within the same geographical region as covered by the mobile-satellite system, for receiving the data from the satellite, each of said plurality of remote units including,
• a remote antenna;
• remote-filter means coupled to said remote antenna for notch filtering the plurality of mobile channels;
• and
• remote-detection means coupled to said remote-filter means, for recovering the data communicated from said satellite.

A remote unit for use with a spread-spectrum satellite system for receiving data from a satellite, said spread-spectrum satellite system having a plurality of remote units located within a same geographical region as covered by a mobile-satellite system, with the mobile-satellite system having a plurality of mobile-satellite users communicating on a plurality of mobile channels, said spread-spectrum satellite system overlaying in spectrum the plurality of mobile channels for communicating with the plurality of remote units simultaneously and non-interferingly with communications between the plurality of mobile-satellite users, said remote unit comprising:

• a remote antenna;
• a comb filter for notch filtering the plurality of mobile channels;
• and
• a spread-spectrum receiver for recovering data communicated from said satellite.

A method, using a spread-spectrum satellite system, for communicating data from a satellite to a plurality of remote units, said spread-spectrum satellite system having said plurality of remote units located within a same geographical region as covered by a mobile-satellite system, with the mobile-satellite system having a mobile bandwidth and a plurality of mobile-satellite users communicating on the mobile bandwidth, said spread-spectrum satellite system communicating with said plurality of remote units simultaneously and non-interferingly with the mobile-satellite system communicating with the plurality of mobile-satellite users, and using at least part of the same mobile bandwidth, said method comprising the steps of:

• converting a format of the data into a form suitable for communicating over radio waves;
• spread-spectrum processing the converted data;
• transmitting, from said satellite, the spread-spectrum-processed-converted-data as a data signal across at least part of the mobile bandwidth;
• receiving the data signal;
• and
• recovering, at a remote unit, the data from the data signal.

A method, using a spread-spectrum receiver, for receiving spread-spectrum signals containing data at a remote unit of a spread-spectrum satellite paging system, said spread-spectrum satellite paging system having a plurality of remote units located within a same geographical region as covered by a mobile-satellite system, with the mobile satellite system having a mobile bandwidth divided into a plurality of mobile channels separated by a plurality of guard bands, respectively, and having a plurality of mobile-satellite users communicating on the plurality of mobile channels, respectively, said spread-spectrum satellite paging system communicating with said plurality of remote units simultaneously and non-interferingly with the mobile-satellite system communicating with the plurality of mobile-satellite users, and using at least part of the same mobile bandwidth, said method comprising the steps of:

• receiving the spread-spectrum signals transmitted over at least a part of the mobile bandwidth;
• notch filtering at the plurality of mobile channels;
• and
• recovering the data from the spread-spectrum signals.

A spread-spectrum satellite paging system for communicating paging data from a satellite to a plurality of remote pager units, said spread-spectrum satellite paging system having said plurality of remote pager units located in a same geographical region as covered by a mobile-satellite system, with the mobile-satellite system having a mobile bandwidth and having mobile-satellite users communicating using the mobile bandwidth, said spread-spectrum satellite system comprising:

• a satellite, having an antenna beamwidth overlaying the same geographical region as covered by said mobile-satellite system, for communicating paging data to the plurality of remote pager units;
• system means for converting a format of the paging data into a form suitable for communicating over radio waves;
• system-product means for spread-spectrum processing the converted paging data as spread-spectrum-processed paging data;
• system means for transmitting across the mobile bandwidth, simultaneously and non-interferingly with a transmission from said mobile-satellite system, the spread-spectrum-processed paging data from the satellite to a respective one of the plurality of remote pager units;
• and
• a plurality of remote pager units, located within the same geographical area as covered by said mobile-satellite system, for receiving on the mobile bandwidth the spread-spectrum-processed paging data, each of said remote pager units including,
• a remote antenna;
• and
• remote-detection means coupled to said remote antenna for recovering the paging data communicated from said satellite.

A method, using a spread-spectrum satellite paging system, for communicating paging data from a satellite to a plurality of remote paging units, said spread-spectrum satellite system having said plurality of remote paging units located within a same geographical region as covered by a mobile-satellite system, with the mobile-satellite system having a mobile bandwidth and a plurality of mobile-satellite users communicating on a plurality of mobile channels within the mobile bandwidth, said method comprising the steps of:

• converting a format of the paging data into a form suitable for communicating over radio waves;
• spread-spectrum processing the converted paging data;
• transmitting, from said satellite, the spread-spectrum-processed-converted-paging data as a data signal using the mobile bandwidth, said data signal transmitted simultaneously and non-interferingly with a mobile-satellite-system communication signal transmitted using the mobile bandwidth;
• receiving the data signal at a remote unit;
• notch filtering at the plurality of mobile channels;
• and
• recovering, at the remote unit, the paging data from the data signal.