Speakers
Description
As a response to the increasing market need for In-Orbit Services, D-Orbit is developing an offer able to provide AOCS takeover and relocation of satellites, particularly in geostationary orbit. D-Orbit has analysed several alternatives for a system that can tackle such market segment. Considerations on the design choices advanced by established and emerging competitors, the variability in targets and mission scenarios, and the specific needs for expandability and futureproofing, led to the definition of the modular architecture that now characterizes the D-Orbit General Expansion Architecture (GEA) programme. GEA proposes a highly modular approach leading to a spacecraft where the centre of attention moves away from the system and focuses on the modules that compose it. This allows D-Orbit to adapt the final spacecraft to serve a particular IOS mission depending on the final service schedule that is derived for such mission and maximises value for the customer..
Making up any GEA spacecraft, is a set of modules sharing standardized mechanical and electrical interfaces. The selection and the configuration of these modules depend on each spacecraft class mission and sizing point, with a physical architecture that allows a spacecraft configuration to be rapidly assembled from pre-manufactured modules, significantly increasing the mission responsiveness. Furthermore, such far-reaching modularity of the overall architecture allows the GEA spacecraft to be serviceable once already in space, adding or swapping modules, by means of services provided by other GEA spacecraft. With this approach, a true In-Orbit Servicing and Logistics infrastructure is deployed, moving beyond custom-made, single-mission designs towards truly adaptable and scalable solutions and creating a live ecosystem in orbit that can in turn feed off itself.
Developing such a service has challenges beyond the technical realm, including tackling the regulatory difficulties of involving multiple licensing authorities, the legal intricacies of service-based contracts, and the commercial hurdles of establishing a new market. D-Orbit aims to replicate its success in the LEO transportation market by providing an end-to-end regular and recurrent service with minimal barriers for customer acquisition at a very competitive price-point.
