State the consolidation plainly, because that is the value: a satellite normally needs antennas for two distinct jobs, cross-links to other satellites and a communication link to the ground or users. This grant claims one phased array that does both, and on a spacecraft, eliminating an antenna eliminates mass, power draw, and a failure point.
The grant US11223126B1 (inventor Erik Lier), classified in H01Q 3/2635 (phased-array beam control) with H04B 7/18508, H04B 7/18515, and H04B 7/18523, claims the combined-function array. The mix of antenna-structure and satellite-communications CPC codes is the signature of a filing that spans both the hardware and the link it serves.
The mechanism is shared aperture with managed beams. The same array forms beams pointed at neighboring satellites for cross-links and beams pointed at the ground for the user link, with the control system multiplexing the aperture between the two roles. The dependent claims around how that sharing is managed are where the engineering moat lives.
This is the same part-count-collapsing instinct visible across the modular-architecture era, where the satellite array architecture grant (US11336029B2) pushed standardized building blocks. Fewer, more capable antennas per spacecraft is a recurring path to cheaper, lighter fleets.
The defense-prime fingerprint is worth noting: a consolidated, robust array that reduces failure points fits a mission-assurance mindset, the same priority visible in Lockheed's fault-tolerant propulsion work. The patent tells you the company values resilience and integration. Whether the shared aperture matches dedicated antennas on raw performance is a tradeoff the claim sets up but the flight hardware resolves.