Jan 10 1976
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(New page: An unmanned ground terminal that could operate with several satellites in synchronous orbit above the earth was patented by three engineers for the Communications Satellite Corporation. Pr...)
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An unmanned ground terminal that could operate with several satellites in synchronous orbit above the earth was patented by three engineers for the Communications Satellite Corporation. Previously, a separate earth terminal was needed for each satellite. William K. Sones, Laurence F. Gray, and Louis Pollack, of the ComSat staff in Washington, D.C., invented the new facility, considered a major advance that would add reliability and reduce costs. The structure included a single reflector about 9.7m by 15.4m with enough traveling-wave tubes, transmitters, receivers, and amplifiers to handle two or more satellites, plus monitors and controls; the reliability feature was a system that switched in another tube if one became defective. Possible uses would be on offshore rigs or at oil-pipeline installations that were unmanned but required constant communication by satellite. (NYT, 10 Jan 76, 31)
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