TECHNOLOGY / SAM-300
Hardware-controlled admission for orbital RF measurements.
The SAM-300 architecture combines orbital RF physical-consistency checks with FPGA-controlled measurement admission. The admission decision sits upstream of the interface where downstream systems receive qualified measurements.
Development focus: an initial GPS implementation with FPGA admission after digitization and before navigation or fusion. RF discrimination and hardware withholding remain to be demonstrated.
The admission boundary
SAM-300 / RF-ONLY ADMISSION ARCHITECTURE
01 / CANDIDATE INPUT
RF measurements
Selected observables from an external receiver’s acquisition and tracking stage
HARDWARE ADMISSION BOUNDARY
02 / SAM-300 GATE
Physical-consistency checks + FPGA decision
Compare with predicted orbital behavior and a defined error budget
FAIL
WITHHELD
Design objective: withhold measurements that do not satisfy the defined admission criteria.
03 / QUALIFIED OUTPUT
Admitted measurements
Integrity status. Controlled release interface
04 / DOWNSTREAM
Existing PNT stack
Receiver / A-PNT processing consumes qualified output
Host consumes qualified output; upstream admission remains isolated.
Candidate observables are supplied by an external receiver’s acquisition and tracking stage, after digitization.
Conceptual architecture; discrimination performance, hardware enforcement and integration remain to be demonstrated.
SAM-300 is designed to compare measured RF behavior with predictions for the claimed satellite source, using bounded receiver position, motion and timing references. The proposed FPGA admission boundary would release qualified measurements and withhold those that fail defined criteria. It is intended to complement existing receiver authentication and integrity checks.
From RF observables to admission
Measure selected RF observables. Predict expected behavior for the claimed orbital source. Compare observations against a defined error budget. Apply admission criteria in FPGA hardware. Release qualified measurements with integrity status; withhold failures.
The initial research implementation uses open civil GPS signals. An external receiver/acquisition and tracking stage supplies the candidate measurements and source information needed for SAM-300’s physical-consistency checks. A commercial FPGA implements the proposed admission boundary. Qualified measurements and integrity status are intended for downstream navigation or timing processing, with integration requirements established through evaluation.
One SAM-300 core. Two delivery options.
EMBEDDED IMPLEMENTATION
License SAM-300 for integration into a customer’s FPGA or receiver hardware, supported by implementation documentation, test evidence, and integration engineering.
SES HARDWARE MODULE
Integrate an SES-supplied admission module produced through manufacturing partners, with SES responsible for product requirements, acceptance testing, and delivery.
These are planned production paths. Hardened FPGA and conventional ASIC implementations will follow when measured requirements and deployment economics justify them.