Student Expectations from Participating in a Small Spacecraft Development Program

This paper presents work conducted in preparation for a suborbital test flight to test an inertial measurement unit's (IMU's) ability to serve as a position determination mechanism in a GPS-denied environment. Because the IMU could potentially be used at several points during flight, it is not guaranteed that a GPS fix can be used to reset the IMU after the stresses of launch. Due to this, the specific goal of this work is to characterize whether a rocket launch disrupts the IMU-based position knowledge to the extent that it is unusable. This paper discusses preparations for a sub-orbital launch mission to this end. It include a description of the hardware and software used. A discussion of the data logging mechanism and the onboard and post-flight processing which is required to compare the GPS fixes and IMU-generated positions is also presented. Finally, the utility of an IMU capable of maintaining position awareness during launch is discussed.

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“…OpenOrbiter's goals, informed by student participation expectations [28], include [29,30] The CSCI 297 course aims to augment:…”

Section: Student Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

A suborbital IMU test mission

2015

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“…In recent years, the number of developments and launches of small satellites has been increasing, attracting the attention of investors seeking new businesses and of universities wanting to use them for research and educational purposes [1][2][3]. In all cases, rapid development and low cost are required by stakeholders to support a satellite mission.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Solar Module Integrated Converters as Power Generator in Small Spacecrafts: Design and Verification Approach

et al. 2019

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As small satellites are becoming more widespread for new businesses and applications, the development time, failure rate and cost of the spacecraft must be reduced. One of the systems with the highest cost and the most frequent failure in the satellite is the Electrical Power System (EPS). One approach to achieve rapid development times while reducing the cost and failure rate is using scalable modules. We propose a solar module integrated converter (SMIC) and its verification process as a key component for power generation in EPS. SMIC integrates the solar array, its regulators and the telemetry acquisition unit. This paper details the design and verification process of the SMIC and presents the in-orbit results of 12 SMICs used in Ten-Koh satellite, which was developed in less than 1.5 years. The in-orbit data received since the launch reveal that solar module withstands not only the launching environment of H-IIA rocket but also more than 1500 orbits in LEO. The modular approach allowed the design, implementation and qualification of only one module, followed by manufacturing and integration of 12 subsequent flight units. The approach with the solar module can be followed in other components of the EPS such as battery and power regulators.

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