The Japanese electronics and entertainment giant plans to develop small optical communication devices to provide related services for connecting microsatellites in low Earth orbit using a laser beam and offer this optical communication equipment as a service to satellite development companies.
By providing easy-to-use inter-satellite communications capabilities, Sony Space Communications Corporation aims to increase space communications and realize an Internet communications network spanning earth, space and applications such as time services. Using optical communications, the new company is also aiming to provide high-speed communications to small devices, which is physically difficult to achieve with conventional radios, since the latter require large antennas and high output power.
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When it comes to building an optical communications network not only between satellites and the earth, but also between satellites in orbit, Sony Space Communications Corporation strives to provide real-time communications from anywhere on earth to any satellite in space. Optical communications are also easier to implement than traditional radio communications because they do not require certain types of licenses such as radio communications.
Sony aims to promote the use of optical communications in space
The Sony Group has researched and developed optical communication systems at Sony Computer Science Laboratories to provide high-speed data transmission over long distances in a form that can be installed on microsatellites. By applying the optical disc technology that the group has cultivated over the years in the development and production of CD players and other products, it aims to realize ultra-compact, lightweight optical communication devices that can be produced in high volumes and that are resistant to harsh environments. like space.
“Currently, there are about 12,000 satellites in space, and this number is expected to increase in the future. The amount of data used in orbit is also increasing year by year, but the amount of available radio waves is limited,” said Kyohei Iwamoto, president of Sony Space Communications Corporation. “Low orbit (LEO) satellites need to keep in touch with the ground, so a large amount of communication is required to transmit information to them in real time, which is problematic because these satellites need to pass directly overhead. In addition, the need for frequency licenses for radio waves and the limitation of the lower power consumption of communications equipment needed for small satellites such as microsatellites,