Developing a microsatellite at a university is an effective means of training engineering students for an R&D career. Such a programme requires the adoption of many research and development processes from industry. This paper describes how tailored forms of systems engineering, project management and technology management were applied to develop a high technology product at a tertiary educational institution. This microsatellite development programme has produced students who are well prepared for the realities of engineering practice, and a research and development facility that earns research funding for the university.
CUSTOMER REF.: R&D Schoonwinkel MCS REF.: RAD H165
SUNSAT is a 62 kg micro-satellite, developed since 1992 by over fifty students participating in a M.Ing programme. The satellite carries amateur radio communications equipment, a 15 m resolution 3colour stereo pushbroom imager, an attitude control system with 1 m a d accuracy, science quality magnetometers, laser reflectors, and a NASA GPS receiver. With launch scheduled for May 1997, the skills pool established in the Electronic Systems Laboratory is now also being applied to industrial work, particularly for process control. Students involved in SUNSAT have obtained graduate course knowledge, as well as practical development experience while working in a team on a complex system. They have also been exposed to systems engineering and project management. 0-7803-3019-6/96/$3.00 0 1996 IEEE.
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