Speaker
Description
NOGAH space systems pack multiple RC64 processor chips and COTS components, mounted on multiple PCBs, in space-ready enclosures.
RC64 is rad-hard, high-performance, low-power manycore combining 64 DSP cores, large (4 MB) shared memory, a hardware scheduler, and twelve serial links achieving the fastest-ever SpaceFibre data rate. RC64 achieves 16 GFLOPs and 32 fixed-point GMACs, dissipating 0.5W—5W, depending on computing load and on I/O activity, demonstrating highly competitive performance per Watt. RC64 supports up to 4 GB of error-corrected DDR3 memory and 100 Gbit/sec high-speed I/O. High performance interfaces to other components such as FPGA, ADC and DAC, are provided. RC64 contains strong FDIR means and is designed to protect itself, as well as attached COTS devices such as memories, against all space hardships. As a result, RC64 can recover from almost all types of SEFI. RC64 is the fastest, largest, lowest power processor in the global rad-hard, high-reliability arena. It is available off-the-shelf, eliminating the risks of development time and cost.
RC64-based NOGAH systems are preferred over COTS-based solutions because NOGAH and RC64 do not require intricate measures to assure reliability, development of NOGAH systems takes less time and less resources, and the result is economically competitive and more reliable. Rich selection of software enables fast and reliable construction of space systems for on-board processing.
NOGAH systems are based on multiple standard formats of VPX boards and enclosures, or custom form factors, and on high bandwidth SpaceFibre and SpaceWire based connectivity. RC64, as well as space-grade and COTS devices, are combined in a flexible manner, delivering high performance supercomputing in space, consuming very low power. Multiple RC64 and other space-grade processors provide extreme high reliability and extensive FDIR, mutually protecting each other and assuring SEFI-free system operation.
NOGAH software delivery includes software development tools (SDT), real-time ‘Ramon Chips Executive (RCEX), libraries for a variety of uses, and reference applications. SDT comprises a standard C compiler, a task-graph compiler (for expressing parallelism), debugger, simulators, profiler and event recorder, among other components. RCEX includes the needed run-time support of I/O and of task API, in statically linked structures. Libraries provide system services and support for applications including mathematical, data processing, DSP and machine learning primitives, as well as advanced functions such as modems. Reference applications are delivered in source code, to enable users to adapt the code to their unique applications. Such references cover areas such as communications, earth observation, navigation, robotics, and artificial intelligence inference machines in the form of neural networks for domains such as communications, computer vision and autonomy. NOGAH/RC64 applications exploit the manycore shared-memory parallelism available within RC64 processors, as well as the distributed message-based parallelism spanning over multiple RC64 chips.
Dense high-speed SpaceFibre networks interconnect the multiple RC64 chips and other devices (especially FPGAs) on each card, and also provide tight high-speed connectivity between separate cards, whether in the same enclosure or elsewhere in the satellite. That flexible infrastructure, combined with extensive networking libraries and API, enable efficient mapping of arbitrary networks onto the physical nets in a Software-Defined Network (SDN) manner. Thus, arbitrary distributed algorithms can be implemented flexibly on NOGAH systems, and can be modified and upgraded at will while in orbit.
A NOGAH architecture for Earth Observation Satellites (EOS) is demonstrated. One card employs GR712RC (dual core LEON3FT, running a cyber-protected operating system) and protected Non-Volatile Memories (NVM, either EEPROM or FLASH) to control and protect the other cards and to lead FDIR activities. Camera interface cards contain FPGAs for flexible connectivity to various cameras and read-out modes, in addition to RC64 chips for data processing, analytics, compression, storing in NVM, and preparing for downlink transmission. When needed, DAC devices are included to interface analog image sensors. In optical imaging, RC64 tasks may include Time Delay and Integrate (TDI) processing, color/multi-spectral analysis, change detection, and neural-network-based computer vision algorithms for analytics and recognition. In hyper-spectral imaging, RC64 offers real-time object/material recognition based on high-speed correlations of the pixels with pre-specified spectra. In SAR payloads, RC64 is used for either data reduction and compression or for conversion of the signal to images and apply further processing. RC64 is also useful in beam-forming for SAR.
In the framework of the Ramon Chips—Thales Alenia Space FOSTER collaboration project, RC64-based NOGAH systems are evaluated and demonstrated for telecommunication satellites. ESA DSP benchmarks have been implemented, evaluated and reported. Algorithmic libraries, e.g., for channelization, beam-forming, and modems, have been developed. Interference detection and mitigation are explored and investigated.
| Paper submission | Yes |
|---|
