ETL Systems Secures Funding from UK Space Agency

ETL Systems, a global manufacturer and distributor of critical RF equipment for satellite ground stations and RF components, has secured nearly £700,000 of UK Space Agency (UKSA) funding for the development of its ‘Genus Digital 1000’ product line, which brings the benefits of Digital IF to edge devices.

The project is driven by benefits such as the remoting of antennas and facilitating virtualisation at the terminal as an enabler for multi-X operation.

The two-year R&D campaign, valued at £1,152,977, covers the development of ETL’s latest Digital IF (DIF) solution, with the UKSA funding 60% of the total value of the project.

It will be interoperable with ETL Systems’ Genus Digital 5000 wideband gateway products, adhering to the DIFI IEEE-ISTO Interoperability Standard 4900-2021.

The technology will be applied across both governmental and commercial sectors, revolutionising virtualisation for edge and mobile applications, particularly in the Internet of Things (IoT) space.

Commenting on the announcement, Simon Swift, engineering director for digital technologies at ETL Systems, said: “We are thrilled to have been awarded the UKSA funding and it will play a crucial role in the future development of our Digital IF range of products. DIF is a nascent technology and although ETL currently has a wideband solution, it is not suitable for user terminals which are much narrower bandwidth and have more demanding SWaPC constraints.

“With ETL already one of the key players involved in developing Digital IF, the UKSA funding will give us another important boost, helping us to continue developing our offering and meeting the evolving needs of the industry.”