Compact equipment for on-board communications subsystem supervisoryand control system

Onboard equipment for the communications subsystem supervisory and control (CSC) system of a next-generation multibeam high-capacity communications satellite is discussed. In order to keep the equipment as compact, lightweight, and low in power consumption as possible, an onboard data bus system using four kinds of LSIs was developed. It will be carried on-board the Japanese Engineering Test Satellite VI for launch in 1993. Configuration and functions of the CSC equipment, design philosophy of the LSIs, and characteristics of the LSIs developed are discussed     

Near term approach to data relay for satellites under test

The increasing need for a continuous communications link with U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) spacecraft during test missions in low Earth orbit (LEG) has resulted in greater interest in geosynchronous data relay services. This may be a more economical alternative to building additional remote tracking stations for the Air Force Satellite Control Network (AFSCN), and avoids tying up operational assets for a test mission. A low-cost near-term approach for such a space-based data relay system would utilize two existing Defense Satellite Communication System III spacecraft, two existing ground terminals, and a small, standardized terminal using autonomous antenna pointing for the space vehicle under test. Such a system design is presented     

Malfunction Detection System for Advanced Spacecraft

A design approach for a Malfunction Detection System (MDS) to beused on board a manned spacecraft is considered. This design is directed toward orbiting laboratory type vehicles, in which man will be subjected to hostile environments for extended periods of time. The prime purpose of the MDS will be to monitor and evaluate critical signals and display out-of-tolerance conditions. This paper initially discusses a mathematical model approach to a monitoring-system design. Another topic covered is the feasibility of using some value less than the specified tolerance as a signal ?test? limit. Finally, various design decisions and trade-offs involved in choosing a monitoring subsystem configuration are discussed, and the conclusion is that the approach is feasible and could be expanded to include other capabilities.     

Open system concepts for modular avionics

Advanced communications, guidance and navigation systems play key roles in determining superiority of one combat aircraft over another. The use of advanced technology is essential to meeting the mission requirements of present as well as future aircraft. Modular avionics are being used in next generation aircraft, such as the Air Force F-22 fighter and the Army Comanche helicopter, as the means of achieving higher levels of performance, including reduced volume and improved adaptability, maintainability, and expandability. New system acquisitions such as Joint Strike Fighter will attempt to achieve these same performance levels but at dramatically reduced life cycle cost. Retrofit applications will also take on increasing roles in meeting this affordability need as the Department of Defense (DoD) struggles to maintain readiness in the face of the shrinking defense budget. The government is encouraging the use of open standards practices as a means of addressing the affordability issue. The Open Systems Joint Task Force (OS-JTF), formed in September 1994, is chartered to “sponsor and accelerate the adoption of open systems in weapons systems and subsystem electronics to reduce life-cycle costs and facilitate effective weapon system intra- and interoperability”. The purpose of this paper is to relate the concept of open systems to modular avionics. It discusses the key attributes of an open systems approach and identifies key technologies necessary for its success     

Spiral evolution applied to legacy avionics systems

The US Department of Defense (DoD), through the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), has determined that evolutionary acquisition is their strategy of choice for future software-intensive systems, and that the spiral development model (SDM) is the preferred method/process for software-intensive development life cycles. Electronic Systems Command (ESC) at Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts, has written a draft handbook on the use of Spiral Development for all future Command and Control (C2) systems, including reference to the DoD 5000 series and Air Force Program Directive 63-1, Acquisition System, which deploys this OSD mandate for future C2 systems. Barry Boehm's continued work on SDM which he conceived in the 1980s, is heavily biased toward development of new systems that are software-intensive, as noted in a workshop he gave at the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in 2000.     

Checkout: A Changing Technology

On-board/in-flight checkout of future aerospace systems will necessitate a fundamental departure from today's design and checkout activities. The interrelationship of checkout, incorporated into prime vehicular functions, man as a subsystem, and standardization Of hardware/software must be considered as a functional and integral entity if the efforts of today's long-range planning are to become tomorrow's reality. This paper will describe future systems checkout, maintenance and support considerations, and actions and tentative measures necessary for implementation. The realization of the implementation of these concepts into functional elements will depend, accurately and economically, upon the degree of government perceptiveness and the extent of industrial support.     

辅助动力装置系统进气风门位置控制设计与研究

辅助动力装置系统进气风门位置控制子系统用于地面和空中控制辅助动力装置进气风门的打开和关闭,通常由控制器,作动机构(电动作动器和连杆机构)组成。辅助动力装置系统进气风门位置控制子系统的设计是辅助动力装置控制系统设计的一部分,和辅助动力装置进气风门设计、进气风门气动载荷计算分析及辅助动力装置进气道设计同步进行,相互影响。对某型飞机的辅助动力装置系统进气风门位置控制设计方案进行了介绍,该风门位置控制采用单独的风门控制器,降低了辅助动力装置FADEC(Full Authority Digital Electrical Controller,全权限数字电子控制器,简称FADEC)软硬件设计复杂度,简化了接口设计;并且设计了一种新型辅助动力装置系统进气风门作动机构,该作动机构安装/拆卸方便,可达性好;具有力矩放大功能,且该机构可调节,能输出不同大小的力矩。该进气风门位置控制子系统经过型号验证,对后续型号研制具有较强的指导性。     

Vehicular remote tolling services using EGNOS

Future Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) will significantly improve the performance of current navigation systems, providing new and enhanced capabilities. This will enable the implementation of innovative and advanced services and applications closer to the user's needs. In this framework, the road sector is one of the major potential markets for GNSS applications and, therefore, it is very promising for future EGNOS and GALILEO related applications. Satellite navigation receivers are now commonly installed in cars as a key tool for proving new services to people on the move such as electronic charging, real-time traffic information, emergency calls, route guidance, fleet management, or advance driving assistance systems. Specifically, a very important commercial opportunity is represented by the tolling-related applications. This paper describes the Vehicular Remote Tolling (VeRT) Project sponsored by Galileo Joint Undertaking (GJU) and performed in the frame of the first GJU Call under the EC VI Framework Programme. The overall design of the service provision architecture is also presented in this paper, together with the main topics related to the following activities focused on the service prototype demonstrator development.     

Management of Electronic Systems in Space Vehicles

The following is a condensation of a panel discussion which took place at the 1966 Aerospace Systems Conference, Thursday, July 14, 1966, in Seattle, Wash. The panel moderator was Frank Gardiner, at present the Manager of Space Programs at RCA, serving as a representative of the electronics industry in the discussion. Panelists were George H. Stoner, Vice President and General Manager of the space division of Boeing, serving as representative of prime contractors and vehicle integrators; Col. Marion B. Gibson, the Director of the Defense Communication Satellite System Program at the Space Systems Command of the U.S. Air Force in Los Angeles, representing the point of view of the government in the discussion. The overall objective of the panel discussion was to provide some indications or suggestions as to how all levels of organization should operate in order to provide the best electronic products for space vehicles at the least possible expense. As the discussion was held in open sesstion, with questions received from the audience, any mention of classified information was avoided. The discussion was divided into five phases, roughly corresponding to the stages in the life of an electronic system. These phases were 1) the phase in which research of an applied nature, though not as yet directed toward a specific mission, is being done on specific electronic products; 2) the phase in which there is a specific mission in mind.     

Using built-in-test to reduce TPS run times and improve TPSreliability

This paper addresses using information derived from Built-in-Test (BIT) to fault diagnose Units Under Test (UUTs), wherever possible. This philosophic approach to diagnostic testing is not new. It has been studied over the past 20 years under the visor of “Integrated Diagnostics”, but it has yet to be truly implemented in a “real life” military diagnostic test environment. The mindset of Test Program Set design engineering, along with customer and contractor management alike, remains “complete diagnostic testing based upon single catastrophic component failure modes”. If we are to generate cost efficient Test Program Sets (TPSs) under reduced military budget constraints, this will have to change! The test engineer must be encouraged to use methodologies to speed up development time and decrease TPS run times. Using present technology, this is possible now, and as the technology matures, will become a truly viable approach in the future. For the purpose of this paper, the author relies heavily on his extensive US Navy Automatic Test Equipment (ATE) and Test Program Set (TPS) experience, as well as on previous studies performed on using BIT to fault diagnose Unit Under Test failures on US Naval Air weapon systems     

Future Trends in Military Communication Satellite Repeaters

The future development trends in military communication satellite repeaters will be dictated by greater spacecraft capability in terms of payload size, weight, power, and complexity, and attempts to better satisfy the satellite user's needs and desires. This paper presents the basic repeater configurations that have been employed and those that can be expected in the future, along with the user and development constraints on advanced repeater designs. The discussion points out the diverging trends in RF frequency to allow easy user pointing and provide greater capacity, the trend toward channelization within the repeater, and the various methods used to reduce susceptibility to interference. Examples are given of advanced repeaters, which demodulate and process received signals, which transmit and receive on the same frequency, and which route RF signals between antennas. Also discussed is the possibility of employing a large processing ground station and the impact of future repeater configurations on terminal designs.     

A Kilowatt Rotary Power Transformer

Many future satellite configurations will require the transfer of signals and power across rotating interfaces. Satellite systems are particularly cost effective for both commercial and military communications applications if their useful lifetime can be demonstrated to be greater than five years. The rotary transformer has the desireable characteristics of high reliability and low noise which qualify it as a potential replacement for slip rings. This paper describes the development of a rotary transformer for typical spacecraft applications. The transformer is built in modular sections, each capable of transferring 500 watts across a gap at efficiencies greater than 88 percent, dc to dc. The design effort included a study of pertinent electrical characteristics required for typical spacecraft configurations, electrical design and analyses of the overall dc-dc converter, mechanical design of the transformer cores and their assembly, and a study of transformer core and winding characteristics. Breadboard test results have demonstrated the desired level of efficiency, satisfactory operation over temperature, and satisfactory electrical characteristics.     

Military Satellite Communications Using Small Earth Terminals

Satellite communications technology has reached the stage at which it is feasible to develop a reliable military tactical communications system using small transportable Earth terminals. This paper discusses the design considerations involved for a multiple-access system, with particular reference to the Earth terminals.     

The Space Weather Forecast Program

This paper describes the Space Weather Forecast Program managed by the Communications Research Laboratory of Japan. It is a long-range program consisting of three phases of five years each. This program emerged after an effort to investigate future needs for space environment prediction. We conclude that solar flares and magnetic storms are two main critical phenomena which will affect human's space activities in the 21st century. The core of the program is to set up a Space Weather Forecast Center which has core facilities: (1) a computer network system; (2) ground facilities for continuous observation of the Sun; and (3) a satellite-based space environment monitoring system. Emphasis is placed upon the necessity of internal cooperation for efficient operation of the Forecast Center.     

Space power systems requirements and issues: the next decade

Some of the more important space power technology issues, requirements, and challenges of the 1990s are described, and the impact of new component technology on the overall performance of space power systems is assessed. Advanced component, subsystem and system technologies that will significantly affect the performance, reliability, and survivability of next-generation baseload and burst mode space power systems are emphasized. Technology disciplines related to power sources (solar/nuclear and chemical), power conversion, energy storage, power conditioning/distribution and control, and waste-heat acquisition, transport, and rejection are primarily addressed. For some of them, performance trends that can be used as the basis for projecting future advanced power-system performance are developed. Performance capabilities for several different types of space power system for both baseload and burst mode applications are postulated on the basis of evolving technology and point designs that incorporate projections of advanced component capabilities     

Spacecraft Application of Expert Systems

Artificial Intelligence (AI) will play a major role in future spacecraft operation. Because the technology has not matured, knowledge-based systems will be incorporated in an evolutionary manner, with increasing responsibility as their performance is proven. Internal research at Boeing Aerospace Company has demonstrated that AI software development techniques, knowledge-based systems in particular, can be used to provide limited spacecraft subsystem automation. This capability represents a first step toward an evolutionary path to spacecraft automation. A likely progression will proceed to integrated subsystem control, automated planning and scheduling, plan execution, anomoly handling, and eventually to autonomous spacecraft operation. Although this paper is written in the context of Space Station the ideas and techniques identified should be easily transferable to spacecraft automation in general.     

Implications for Entry Level Test Professionals

This paper discusses the product and manufacturing trends that are currently impacting the testing function. In addition, since educational experiences relevant to testing is minimal at most universities, the impact of current and future trends in testing are noted.     

UAVs in Civil Airspace: Safety Requirements

This addresses topics concerning the development of future Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) so they can operate safely within the community of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Studies by the Defense Science Board, the Office of Science and Technology, Government Accountability Office, and the Congressional Research Service Library of Congress have all emphasized that soon there will be a significant number of UAVs operating side-by-side with manned civil aircraft in the FAA's National Airspace System (NAS). It is anticipated that future UAVs will perform many of the dull, dirty, and dangerous civilian missions. In 2006, about 600 UAVs were manufactured in the US alone. Therefore, there is an urgent need for developers of UAVs to understand safety certification for operations in the NAS, and that safety certification starts with safety requirements, safety design, safe development processes, safety verification, and safe operating procedures in the planned operational environment.     

Designing to MIL-STD-2165: Testability

The V-22 avionic hardware is the first to be designed under MIL-STD-2165 testability program requirements. This paper presents an overview of the avionics design-for-testability approach and lessons learned to date relative to the application of MIL-STD-2165. The paper will discuss incorporation of testability requirements up front in the avionics design which will drive the supportability philosophy at both the Organizational and Depot levels of maintenance. The paper will compare previous avionics hardware testability requirements versus those applied to the V-22 avionics and highlight areas of improvement. A discussion of testability design impacts on reduced level of testing (i.e. WRA/SRA/System) will be included. In addition, the paper discusses an innovative approach to meeting the user requirements for a man-portable forward deployed maintenance capability that forms the basis for a two level support scenario (Organizational and Depot). The innovation comes from the fact that the on-board Central Integrated Checkout system will provide data as well as fault isolation and will use this data as a mechanism to reduce the size and complexity of the stimulus and measurement hardware at either the Organizational or Depot level depending on the deployment requirements.     

Improvements in Advanced Electronic Navigation Systems

Advanced electronic navigation systems will be required for future merchant ship operations involving minimum crew manning. These systems will rely on some form of electronic chart, which will require continual and timely updating with the latest correction information. This paper describes a newly developed chart correction computer system capable of automatically updating electronic charts via satellite data transfers. The system can provide a direct computer data link between a shipboard computer and the Defense Mapping Agency's Automated Notice to Mariners System.