Eutelsat Gets To The Point For Finding Satellites

[SatNews] Provides a full set of basic parameters for exact antenna pointing; elevation, azimuth angles, line-of-sight and optimal polarization angles.

Eutelsat Communications has launched Eutelsat Satellite Finder a tool for accurate pointing of satellite antennas for consumers, installers, VSAT operators as well as news agencies, broadcasters and service operators carrying out newsgathering operations. The app is available free of charge at iTunes and Google Play, tagged as Eutelsat Satellite Finder.

The new application, available on iOS and Android driven devices, is available for all Eutelsat satellites. It follows on from Eutelsat’s pioneering support and adoption of the Carrier ID initiative to enable the identification of satellite transmissions.

Eutelsat Satellite Finder assembles a full set of basic parameters for exact antenna pointing, from elevation and azimuth angles to line of sight and optimal polarization angles. For smartphones and tablets not equipped with a GPS module, locations can be determined via Google Maps for automatic identification of longitude and latitude needed for precise calculations of azimuth and elevation angles.

Using augmented reality, the app shows a given location with a general pointing direction while the tilt sensors of smartphones and tablets guide users towards the exact alignment. In order to help visualise the line of sight, the app also uses the built-in camera of a device to display a satellite.

With Eutelsat Satellite Finder, Eutelsat is extending across its entire fleet the Ka-Sat Finder application launched in 2012 to support accurate installations of Tooway antennas and ‘Fransat Assistance’ for users in France receiving the platform of French digital channels broadcast by Eutelsat 5 West A.