Abstract The NewSpace approach of utilizing CubeSats and smaller satellites for complex LEO missions that once were reserved only for bigger platform, paired with the requirement of enduring reliability and quality assurance on batches of tens of satellites, is paving the way for the use of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) components in micro-satellite missions. The recent global supply chain issues and extended lead times in the procurement of micro-controllers, memories and passive electronic components, caused by the pandemic and factories shutdowns, have resulted in a forced procurement diversification of several key elements, even in partially assembled products. GAUSS has been designing, manufacturing, and launching Small Satellites since early 2000. Its tenth satellite, UNISAT-7, was launched by a Soyuz-Fregat LV on March 22nd, 2021. Thanks to the vast experience gained on the application of commercial components in all the subsystems developed by the company, the typical overall costs for a complete platform are substantially lower compared to competitors, while retaining similar reliability. UNISAT-7, developed using lean-satellite methodologies, included more than 28 independent subsystems with their own telemetry, and most of them were developed in-house using ground COTS components; no space-grade products were employed, to save on overall mission costs. Some systems were devised from the start using open-source hardware, to expedite the prototyping process, while having the benefit of using readily available software, generally included with these platforms. Raspberry embedded devices were employed on the flight model for two remote sensing systems, to test how such systems, duly adapted to sustain space conditions, may perform and show reliability similar to commercial space systems worth thousand times the value. All systems have been activated and successfully verified for an entire year in LEO. They were hardened for vacuum, extreme temperatures, radiation, and launch stresses using common items found in general hardware stores. This work will delve into the open-source/COTS components used, the process employed to strengthen them, and the programmed flight firmware routines for maximizing embedded devices’ reliability in space.

    Highlights Use of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) components in micro-satellite missions UNISAT-7 as a space-tug, to deploy CubeSats and PocketQubes in LEO GAUSS experience on COTS usage for micro- and nano-satellite missions Use of open-source embedded systems in micro and nano-satellite missions Best practices to enhance low-cost COTS reliability


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    Titel :

    Best practices on adopting open-source and commercial low-cost devices in small satellites missions


    Beteiligte:

    Erschienen in:

    Acta Astronautica ; 211 ; 37-48


    Erscheinungsdatum :

    2023-06-01


    Format / Umfang :

    12 pages




    Medientyp :

    Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)


    Format :

    Elektronische Ressource


    Sprache :

    Englisch


    Schlagwörter :

    UNISAT , COTS , CubeSat , Raspberry , Open-source , OEM , Acronyms/Abbreviations: Gruppo di Astrodinamica dell’Università degli Studi “La Sapienza” (GAUSS) , Group of Astrodynamics for the Use of Space Systems (GAUSS) , Commercial-off-the-shelf components (COTS) , Experimental Astronautic Research for nadir Directional Light (EARENDIL) , In-Orbit Demonstrator (IOD) , Power Conditioning and Distribution Unit (PCDU) , Automatic Release System (ARS) , System-on-a-Chip (SoC) , Earth Observation (EO) , Low-Earth orbit (LEO) , Launch Vehicle (LV) , Engineering Model (EM) , Flight Model (FM) , Thermal Vacuum Testing (TVAC) , Two-Line Elements (TLE) , Space Situational Awareness (SSA) , Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (COCOM) , Astronomical Unit (AU) , On-Board-Data-Handling (OBDH) , Angular Field of View (AFOV) , Raspberry (RPI) , Real-time clock (RTC) , Network-time Protocol (NTP) , Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART) , American Wire Gauge (AWG) , European Cooperation for Space Standardization (ECSS) , Light Emitting Diodes (LED) , Ground Support Equipment (GSE) , Multi-Layer Insulation (MLI) , Narrowband Internet of things (NB-IoT) , Assembly , Integration and Test (AIT) , Closed-Circuit Televison (CCTV) , Do-It-Yourself (DIY) , Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) , Onboard Computer (OBC) , Inter-Agency Debris Committee (IADC) , Orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) , Global Positioning System (GPS) , NORAD , UV-C , Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) , Synchronous Dynamic Random-Access Memory (SDRAM) , Printed Circuit Board (PCB) , Camera Serial Interface (CSI)



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