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  • Design and development approach for a highly capable standard nano-spacecraft

    Paper number

    IAC-13,B4,6B,4,x19220

    Author

    Mr. Joris Naudet, QinetiQ Space nv, Belgium

    Coauthor

    Dr. Lucy Berthoud, University of Bristol, United Kingdom

    Coauthor

    Mr. Carlos Corral Van Damme, European Space Research and Technology Centre, ESA-ESTEC, The Netherlands

    Coauthor

    Mr. Ronald Kassel, QinetiQ Space nv, Belgium

    Coauthor

    Mr. Andrew Bacon, Systems Engineering & Assessment Ltd, United Kingdom

    Coauthor

    Dr. Claire Parfitt, Systems Engineering & Assessment Ltd, United Kingdom

    Year

    2013

    Abstract
    The interest in nano-sized spacecraft (20kg, 20W) for scientific and technological missions is now very present and is expected to grow over the coming years. One of the most important advantages of nano-spacecraft is that their reduced cost provides the opportunity to revise the typical spacecraft design and development approach and to propose new concepts allowing to reduce the development time and cost, not necessarily at the expense of risk and quality.
    
    
    This article reports on an exercise that was made by Systems Engineering and Assessment (SEA) and QinetiQ Space under an ESA contract to define a highly capable nano-platform that can be deployed in a multitude of different missions, without need for extensive redesign. The paper presents the trade-offs that were made between different types of architecture, ranging from common mission-specific designs to highly modular platforms, with attention for both the hardware and the software.  It also discusses the implications for the ground segment and the operations that have been investigated during the project.
    
    
    The exercise did not only focus on design aspects but also on the development approach. A suitable model philosophy is proposed and ways are presented to drastically improve the different verification and validation steps, while keeping the risk low.
    Abstract document

    IAC-13,B4,6B,4,x19220.brief.pdf

    Manuscript document

    IAC-13,B4,6B,4,x19220.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

    To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.