A Hierarchical Planning Method for the Inter-satellite Links Network of Navigation Satellite Constellations

Given the communication features of STDMA among inter-satellite links, this the-sis proposed a hierarchical planning method for the inter-satellite links network of navigation constellation. First, we hierarchized the satellite networks in accordance with their visible relationships, and interlinked them hierarchically on the basis of STDMA. Second, we comprehensively analyzed the costs of hop, time-delay and load on the stability of inter-satellite links, and therefore designed an improved A* algorithm suitable for multi-level satellite networks. At last, we simulated our method under constellation models. The results of simulations revealed that the time-delay among links was less than 5 s on average, mean hops were less than 2 counts, and on-board load converged, which met the requirements of QoS communication.