Beam-hopping system configuration and terminal synchronization schemes

In 2019, the digital video broadcasting (DVB) project published an updated specification of the DVB-S2X standard to improve the support of beam- hopping systems. This was on the one hand due to market needs for enhanced efficiency and flexibility compared to conventional systems but on the other hand also enabled by emerging satellite technologies such as active antenna and beam forming solutions that allow for practical implementation of the beam hopping systems. To this end, this chapter discusses system deployment and configuration scenarios as well as features of the DVB-S2X standard specification for beam-hopping. Furthermore, potential terminal features and synchronization schemes are described, which includes an essential algorithm for the start of illumination detection.