A novel scheme for telemetry system data rate optimization

Limited telemetry bandwidth due to restricted radio frequency spectrum allocation is typically one of the most challenging problems when designing a telemetry system for space applications. To further complicate the problem, a large percentage of the allotted bandwidth is consumed by the over-head required by each packet to follow various standards and layer of protocols used in the telemetry system. This results in inefficiency in the actual telemetry data downlinked to the ground station. In the typical telemetry design, only one virtual channel is used per packet. As a result, in order to achieve the required packet size, filled data is inserted into the remaining bits. This Idle Packet consists of a set pattern of binary digits, and is considered part of the overhead, as its sole purpose is to fill the packet. In this work, a new scheme is proposed which takes advantage of the empty bits by starting the next virtual channel instead of inserting filled bits. This method will reduce the overall amount of overheard, in addition to allowing more data to be transmitted.