Digital audio broadcasting (DAB) via satellite: results of an Archimedes measurement campaign

The European Space Agency has, for some years, been studying the use of satellites in highly-inclined elliptical orbits (HEO) for sound and data broadcasting. Detailed channel characterisation and performance studies have been performed, which have demonstrated the feasibility of a system based on the EUREKA-147 digital audio broadcasting (DAB) standard. Nevertheless, a number of uncertainties remained concerning the characteristics of the transmission channel. The principal objectives of the campaign described were to transmit a representative DAB signal from a suitable platform emulating as closely as possible the characteristics of an HEO satellite, to record the received signal and an appropriate selection of objective performance and system characterisation measures and to assess and interpret the performance on the basis of subjective and objective measurements. The first results of this extensive measurement campaign, performed by the German Aerospace Research Establishment (DLR) and the Institute fur Rundfunktechnik (IRT) in the in the spring, summer and autumn of 1995, are presented.