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Description
Summary
DPC status
Started in 2012 in the frame of an Artes 5.2 contract, the development of the Digital Programmable Controller DPC has reached major milestones in 2015. The DPC successfully passed the analog characterization and the radiation tests covering heavy ions , protons, and Total Ionisation Dose tests, allowing to proceed with the formal qualification process .
Intensive tests plans were successfully passed in order to validate the DPC performances under extreme temperatures and under radiation environment.
In order to support the DPC dissemination, a DPC reference kit (DRK) has been built. This board ( industrial quality) allows the partner to takeover the DPC features and to start programming in a convenient environment.The DRK is made available with a SW development toolkit including compiler , debugger, boot loader, …
Next steps are the formal qualification process as per ESCC 9000, which was initiated in 2015.
Parts are being manufactured to follow the charts F2 F3 and F4 under a dedicated Artes 3-4 contract.
DPC for Space Applications : NEOSAT
In parallel with the DPC ASIC, Thales Alenia Space has developed a new generation of “high power” avionic equipment intended to be at the heart of the Spacebus NEO solution, the SDIU MK2.
Thanks to the intrinsic versatility and flexibility of the DPC, the ASIC was implemented in all the different boards of the SDIU, covering a wide range of applications :
The STUB module (STUB) implements the external 1553 I/F and the generation of the unit internal power supplies, the redundancy configuration of the unit, and the backplane communications and management via CAN bus, all CAN communications being performed by DPC’s. It also includes the external CAN interfaces for the payload interfaces in future satellites.The Full Step motor drive and Plasmic Propulsion module (FSPP) is mainly intended for the positioning of the steerable telecom antennas, but the same module is able to cover both that functionality and the plasmic propulsion, because the needs are similar; this is why the module is present on both the PLDIU and the PFDIU
The Reaction Wheels and platform DISTribution module (RDIST) manages the distribution of power to platform units, distribution and control of platform heaters, and the interfacing with the reaction wheels of which there are 4 on the satellite.
The Chemical PROPulsion module (CPROP)covers command and control of all of the elements of the chemical propulsion
The Micro Step solar Array Drive module (MSAD) covers command and control of the solar array deployment and the solar array mechanism motor driving in micro-step mode.
The Lithium Battery Management module (LBM) monitors Li-Ion cell and battery voltages, and command and control of cell bypass and cell balancing elements.
On top of these equipments, the analog IP developed in the frame of the DPC are currently being reused by TAS UK to develop a specific GYRO Asic intended for NEOSAT platform.
DPC for Space Applications
The DPC ASIC is currently used in the new TAS “ medium power” avionics product range, consistent with SAVOIR roadmap.
In this new portfolio, the RTU under development for the CERES project is also relying on the DPC performances. It brings efficient, flexible and scalable mechanical and electrical architectures. It also allows the implementation of a very large panel of functions (TM/TC, propulsion, distribution, AOCS, …).
Another innovative product is the Carrier Module RTU (CRTU) to be used in Exomars Project. Inspired from medium power avionic architecture of the RTU, the CRTU contains the following modules: STUB for control and communications, PROP for proplusion management and IO for various interfaces management . All theses modules are entirely DPC-based.
In cooperation with CNES, Onera launched some experimentations to demonstrate the performances of vibrating MEMS inertial sensors DPC driven for various applications. A dedicated presentation by Onera is planned in the frame of this AMICSA 2016 conference.
The DLR Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics (RM) is going to develop a new multisensorial robotic arm with seven joints for space applications like On-Orbit-Servicing. Each joint of this robot shall consist of a Force-Torque-Sensor, an absolute position sensor for the drive side and a motor commutation sensor for the used BLDC motor. The motor control of the BLDC motor is based on a current control algorithm and a Space-Vector-Modulation for the current set-point vector. In addition, some communication tasks and housekeeping data monitoring at a lower frequency must be performed, too. All these central tasks shall be performed on the DPC.
