It is actually necessary, because it has to be aimed much more accurately than a DirecTV dish. Mainly because it transmits as well as receives. (And I think regulations require dishes that transmit either aim themselves or be aimed by a licensed professional anytime it is mounted/moved.)
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Tesla Supercharger network
- Thread starter dsm363
- Start date
Neither of you are totally correct. The Starlink user terminal does have motorized pointing/aiming so that it can find the correct direction to be grossly aimed in for best viewing of the satellites given the terminal's location. However, these motors are not used to make constant adjustments or for satellite tracking. They are essentially just used when the dish is first booted up in a new location, after that it doesn't move anymore. Starlink uses a phased array antenna for electronic beam steering to maintain contact with the satellites as they pass through the view.
First of all, testing is well underway for automotive Starlink. It's just not endorsed by Tesla, Starlink, SpaceX or anyone with half a brain. But people are dumb so they try. 
Second of all, I'd like to have Starlink wifi at superchargers so my car can immediately get software updates, and send back any important data from the car to the mothership. Stuff they need for faster feedback for Autopilot training, telemetry data, actually send BUG REPORTS and not wait until service pulls them.. etc.
These days charging is so fast that by the time I've hit the bathroom, then come back to the car, loaded up whatever app it is I would want to watch something on, found the thing I wanted to watch, and started to watch it, charging would probably be done so I'm not sure the point of having it beam to the car, although I wouldn't complain. Perhaps another perk for premium connectivity users?
Second of all, I'd like to have Starlink wifi at superchargers so my car can immediately get software updates, and send back any important data from the car to the mothership. Stuff they need for faster feedback for Autopilot training, telemetry data, actually send BUG REPORTS and not wait until service pulls them.. etc.
These days charging is so fast that by the time I've hit the bathroom, then come back to the car, loaded up whatever app it is I would want to watch something on, found the thing I wanted to watch, and started to watch it, charging would probably be done so I'm not sure the point of having it beam to the car, although I wouldn't complain. Perhaps another perk for premium connectivity users?
I would encourage people interested in getting deep into the specific details of Starlink (other than deployment at Superchargers) to visit the thread below:
teslamotorsclub.com
Bruce.
SpaceX Internet Satellite Network: Starlink
Next up for Elon Musk? Launching satellites into space - CNET Elon's thinking about getting into the satellite business?
teslamotorsclub.com
Bruce.
If it didn't need to be aimed, the antenna could be integrated into the glass roof of the car. But it appears it needs to be aimed so that's not going to happen.
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
I have limited data on my LTE plan for my phone (3G is pretty much phased out and can be considered non-existent going forward) so I would love to have free wifi at superchargers. Of course if you have the Premium Connectivity plan, it doesn't matter as much, but for those of us without it, it would be nice to have, and yet another incentive to use superchargers.
bkp_duke
Well-Known Member
Starlink antennas track the satellites (i.e. they move). Elon has publicly stated there is no intention to install Starlink for autos, as it would be too large and too cumbersome and the experience for a moving auto would be sub-part to cellular.
I'm thinking tear out one of the rear seats and install the antenna there - I mean after all you do have a glass roof and ya wanna maintain aerodynamics.
XHabjab
TSLA Bull
Most of this information is wrong.
The satellites have a phased array antenna but the ground stations do not. They are traditional dishes and move constantly to track a satellite above, which is moving. Elon’s directions are “Plug it in. Point at the sky”. The ground dishes do all the positioning work themselves (constantly).
The ground stations need to know their gross position in order to know where to point to known satellite positions. You can not order a station for a Florida address and use it in Oregon. The dishes (currently) can not be used on a movable location such as a car, RV, truck or boat, but there is talk of using on an airplane or cruise ship. This would require development of a new antenna design (no changes required on the satellite end). Supposedly, the US military has done testing with airplanes, but it is not properly developed technology.
This info is out of scope for this thread and further discussion should move per bmah’s info.
Ugh. People were not talking about ground stations, which are the SpaceX owned locations that connect to the Internet and communicate with the satellites. Yes, ground stations typically have 8 parabolic antennas underneath radomes that constantly move to track satellites.
But people here were talking about end user dishes. End user dishes do not move to track the satellites, they use a phased array to track the satellites. While people call them “dishes”, they are actually flat, and the new ones aren’t even round.
stopcrazypp
Well-Known Member
Someone did a teardown. It was already mentioned up thread, but Starlink uses both motors and the phase array to adjust the direction of the antenna. There are pan and tilt motors that are used during setup, so all the user has to do is set it up generally pointed to the sky, and the pan/tilt motors will physically move the antenna "dish" to the optimal angle. Then in daily use it tracks using the phased array.
Literally Tearing Apart A SpaceX Starlink Antenna
While generally the dish generally no longer moves after the initial setup, you can find reports that it has moved in the past on its own even while the dish was still "live". So it's definitely not constantly moving (phased array makes that unnecessary), but it can move to readjust if necessary (I imagine it may be to adjust to changes in the constellation).
XHabjab
TSLA Bull
A couple of things...
First, I am wrong about the antennae on user stations - they do use phased array technology, and move less than my previous understanding. Looking back at my message above, it came across more negative than I intended and a wee bit snarky. Thanks to @Cosmacelf and @stopcrazypp for better info than mine, and apologies to @mociaf9 for the unintended snark.
Second, this is the Supercharger Network thread, and there are plenty of threads for Starlink terminals et al. Further discussion on Dishy McFlatface should go to one of those.
FlatSix911
Porsche 918 Hybrid
Tesla expands Supercharger network to Alaska, now in all 50 states
Tesla has deployed a new Supercharger station in Alaska. It’s the first in the state and now means there is...
electrek.co
"The station is located in Soldotna, which is about 150 miles from Anchorage, Alaska’s biggest population center. It enables road trips south of the city. Last week, Tesla announced that it reached the new milestone of 30,000 Superchargers worldwide. Earlier this summer, we reported on how Tesla is gearing up for a giant Supercharger expansion ahead of opening the network to other EVs.
Following Tesla’s confirmation of this, the automaker started hiring many new charging design managers – in charge of opening new stations in the US. As we noted, the move coincides with a new $7.5 billion federal program to fund EV infrastructure that is currently being adopted, and one of the requirements to get access to the funds is that the charging stations are open to vehicles from more than one automaker. By opening its network, Tesla will increase traffic, but it will also have access to more funds to grow the network faster. And Tesla plans to grow its Supercharger network quickly."
Did Tesla open a supercharger in Hawaii that I haven't heard about? Maybe the one on Lana'i was opened first and no one realized? More likely Electrek just made a boo-boo.Tesla expands Supercharger network to Alaska, now in all 50 states
Tesla has deployed a new Supercharger station in Alaska. It’s the first in the state and now means there is...
FlatSix911
Porsche 918 Hybrid
Interesting to note that Tesla has updated their location map to include Superchargers open to non-Tesla... none are shown as active yet.
Actually there are 10 that are shown as active where they are performing the pilot:Interesting to note that Tesla has updated their location map to include Superchargers open to non-Tesla... none are shown as active yet.
They announced on 11/1:
Non-Tesla Supercharger Pilot | Tesla Support
Launched in November 2021, our Non-Tesla Supercharger pilot will continue to expand to new sites and countries in support of our mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.
FlatSix911
Porsche 918 Hybrid
I should have mentioned that none are active in the US at this time... we shall see.Actually there are 10 that are shown as active where they are performing the pilot:
View attachment 737647
They announced on 11/1:
Non-Tesla Supercharger Pilot | Tesla Support
Launched in November 2021, our Non-Tesla Supercharger pilot will continue to expand to new sites and countries in support of our mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.www.tesla.com
I'm not sure if page 453 is a good place to put this information, but I've done some spreadsheet calculations.
Sourcing information exclusively from Supercharge.info, I've come up with the following two reasonably correct values.
Average time for a new Supercharger location to go from Permit status to Construction status: 129.62 Days.
Average time for a new Supercharger location to go from Construction status to Open status: 86.15 Days.
Simply adding those together I ***think*** the average time from finding a new permit to being able to charge at the site is 215.77 Days, or approximately seven and a half months.
The failures in using these numbers is that it's just the observation of the community, not the actual inner workings of Tesla and their contractors. There are a lot of missing values because of this. There is also an enormous difference between the highest and lowest values of each the permit time and the construction time.
If someone were really inclined to do the work we could figure out which states seem to pop-up a new location the quickest and the slowest. Not me right now, though.
Sourcing information exclusively from Supercharge.info, I've come up with the following two reasonably correct values.
Average time for a new Supercharger location to go from Permit status to Construction status: 129.62 Days.
Average time for a new Supercharger location to go from Construction status to Open status: 86.15 Days.
Simply adding those together I ***think*** the average time from finding a new permit to being able to charge at the site is 215.77 Days, or approximately seven and a half months.
The failures in using these numbers is that it's just the observation of the community, not the actual inner workings of Tesla and their contractors. There are a lot of missing values because of this. There is also an enormous difference between the highest and lowest values of each the permit time and the construction time.
If someone were really inclined to do the work we could figure out which states seem to pop-up a new location the quickest and the slowest. Not me right now, though.
FlatSix911
Porsche 918 Hybrid
Tesl;a may need to deploy this system in other countries to help prevent Supercharger ICEing.
electrek.co
"Tesla is doubling down on a system to prevent people from blocking or “ICEing” Supercharger stalls and even integrates it into its mobile app. The term “ICEing” a charging station is used in the EV community to describe ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles occupying a space for an EV at a charging station.
Many places have implemented fines for parking at a charging station without charging, which has discouraged people from doing it, but in markets where those don’t exist, it can be a real problem. In some cases, people have been doing it on purpose to make some kind of point against electric vehicles. In China, Tesla took an interesting approach to try to prevent ICEing a Supercharger. In 2019, it started to deploy floor locking devices that pop up from the ground at some new Supercharging stations:"
Tesla doubles down on system to prevent gas cars ‘ICEing’ Superchargers, integrates it in its app
Tesla is doubling down on a system to prevent people from blocking or “ICEing” Supercharger stalls and even integrates it...
electrek.co
"Tesla is doubling down on a system to prevent people from blocking or “ICEing” Supercharger stalls and even integrates it into its mobile app. The term “ICEing” a charging station is used in the EV community to describe ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles occupying a space for an EV at a charging station.
Many places have implemented fines for parking at a charging station without charging, which has discouraged people from doing it, but in markets where those don’t exist, it can be a real problem. In some cases, people have been doing it on purpose to make some kind of point against electric vehicles. In China, Tesla took an interesting approach to try to prevent ICEing a Supercharger. In 2019, it started to deploy floor locking devices that pop up from the ground at some new Supercharging stations:"
FlatSix911
Porsche 918 Hybrid
A bit of good news just in time for the holidays... Merry Christmas!
electrek.co
"Tesla is bringing back its discounted, and now actually free, Supercharging for the holidays. We reported that Tesla did it in California during the holidays and now it’s expanding the program to more states and charging stations for Christmas travel days.
Tesla announced today that Supercharging is going to be free before 10 AM and after 7 PM at 76 stations across several states between Thursday, December 23 and Sunday, December 26. Based on the locations, it looks like Tesla is focusing on travel routes between major centers where there are high concentrations of Tesla owners."
Tesla offers free Supercharging in off-peak hours for holidays to help curb traffic
Tesla announced that it is going to offer free Supercharging during off-peak hours for the holidays in order to help...
electrek.co
"Tesla is bringing back its discounted, and now actually free, Supercharging for the holidays. We reported that Tesla did it in California during the holidays and now it’s expanding the program to more states and charging stations for Christmas travel days.
Tesla announced today that Supercharging is going to be free before 10 AM and after 7 PM at 76 stations across several states between Thursday, December 23 and Sunday, December 26. Based on the locations, it looks like Tesla is focusing on travel routes between major centers where there are high concentrations of Tesla owners."
Similar threads
- Poll
