TTP’s radio frequency front end (RFFE) meets stringent low SWaP (Size, Weight, and Power) demands while delivering exceptional resilience and performance. Developed for Inmarsat’s U.S. government division, now Viasat, the RFFE is a high-performing, compact solution.
Context:
The U.S. government division of Inmarsat (now Viasat) required a new radio frequency front end (RFFE) for satellite communications terminals. The RFFE needed to meet low size, weight and power (SWaP) constraints, exhibit high resilience to interference, and operate in both LAISR and BGAN modes.
Solution:
TTP rigorously tested RFFE prototypes and delivered an initial batch of units. The RFFE’s compact duplexer, highly efficient amplifier and other components all met tight design parameters. TTP also selected a manufacturer and designed a production test system.
Result:
Going from scratch to manufacturing in 12 months, TTP pushed component technologies to their limits in creating a high-performing RFFE design significantly smaller and more efficient than its predecessor, now used in multiple applications.
The RFFE project was well executed. TTP delivered a platform that met our ambitious targets, and the RFFE has quickly become a standard building block for our satcom terminals. This work initiated what has grown to be a very productive relationship between Viasat Government and TTP
Alex Hayes
Sr. Director, Product Development & Engineering at Viasat Government Services
Custom Prototype, Primed for Manufacturing
Pressed by exacting and time-sensitive demands from the U.S. government, Inmarsat approached TTP with its request during the challenging Covid era. A core multidisciplinary team at TTP, led the project. They optimized the RF components, designed the circuitry, wrote the microcontroller software, performed metal fabrication, , and worked out the systems engineering, conducting power-level, altitude, vibration, extreme-temperature, printed circuit board (PCB), bed-of-nails and other testing along the way.
A critical component was a custom ceramic duplex (transmit/receive) filter capable of achieving high RF power handling in an extremely compact form. For high RF power amplification and low DC power consumption, TTP opted for the latest-generation Gallium Nitride (GaN) technology, using a custom thick copper backing, post-bonded to the PCB to dissipate heat, and a novel compact matching network to achieve optimal RF performance. TTP also chose an RF receiver that is highly resilient to unwanted in-band and out-of-band blocking signals, allowing for more effective use of the terminal in crowded spectrum. The RFFE was also designed to work with Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) modems for channel initiation and with L-band Airborne Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (LAISR) modems for dedicated communications.
Prototypes, delivered within nine months, convinced Inmarsat that TTP could meet the low SWaP requirements. Then shifting into production mode, TTP’s team built ten units in-house, worked with the client to select a manufacturer and supported that organization through its scaled delivery of several hundred units with documentation and a production test system for calibration.
The output of this fast-paced project, a satcom terminal subsystem half the size and weight and with much higher performance than its predecessor, has proved popular with Viasat’s U.S. government division. Initially designed for use in unmanned arial vehicles (UAVs), it is now part of satcom systems used on ships and in land-mobile applications.
