On the Feasibility of Satellite M2M Systems

Machine-to-machine (M2M) communications have a very large potential market growth, particularly in the low-cost, low data rate segment. Current satellite systems are not adequate to serve very large populations of low cost devices, with low bandwidth requirements, and severe cost and energy constraints. A satellite system can bring unique advantages in terms of cross-border coverage, availability, and security of the communication. However, it must compete in cost with cellular and unlicensed devices, which are rapidly evolving. The high cost of the space segment can be compensated by the high scalability of the system if the terminal cost can be kept sufficiently low. Moreover, the low bandwidth requirements of M2M systems make reusing current infrastructure possible. In this paper we analyze the feasibility of such M2M satellite system. We define a satellite architecture and multiple access technique appropriate for low-cost, energy-constrained devices, and evaluate its performance in terms of system capacity and energy usage.