MicroADS Spacecraft Attitude Determination System Instrument Software

Lead Research Organisation: University of Sussex
Department Name: Sch of Engineering and Informatics

Abstract

In order to operate correctly, spacecraft need to be able to determine their orientation ("attitude") relative to some other object or objects. A radically new attitude determination system (called MicroADS) has been invented at University of Sussex. It works on a different optical principle to existing instruments, and benefits from wider fields-of-view and better accuracies than comparable systems. To date, most work on the instrument has been hardware development. This new Innovation Fellowship project will develop the computer software (image processing techniques) required to turn the output from the hardware into a direction vector indicating the direction towards the light source being used for attitude determination. This direction vector, together with knowledge of the geometry of the instrument and knowledge of the location of the instrument on the spacecraft, will enable the spacecraft's attitude to be determined. In developing the instrument software, the Innovation Fellow will use image processing techniques previously used for tracking biological cells in microscope images.

Post project, it is planned that MicroADS will be commercialised via a spinout company from University of Sussex.

Publications

10 25 50
 
Title ATTITUDE DETERMINATION SYSTEM 
Description ATTITUDE DETERMINATION SYSTEM 
IP Reference EP3500870 
Protection Patent application published
Year Protection Granted 2019
Licensed No
Impact Patent applied for in: US, UK, EU, China, India, Russia, and Brazil
 
Title ATTITUDE DETERMINATION SYSTEM 
Description An instrument (20) determines the attitude of a spacecraft (3) on which it is mounted, by interacting incident light (11) from the Sun with one or more light conditioning elements (12) and thereby forming a diffraction pattern at a photo- sensitive detector (13). The intensity distribution of light on the detector (13) is dependent on the angle of incidence of the light (11). An on-board computer (16) determines a direction vector to the Sun based on the light diffraction pattern detected by the detector (13). 
IP Reference WO2018037218 
Protection Patent application published
Year Protection Granted 2018
Licensed No
Impact Patent applied for in: US, UK, EU, China, India, Russia, and Brazil
 
Title ATTITUDE DETERMINATION SYSTEM 
Description An instrument (20) determines the attitude of a spacecraft (3) on which it is mounted, by interacting incident light (11) from the Sun with one or more light conditioning elements (12) and thereby forming a diffraction pattern at a photo-sensitive detector (13). The intensity distribution of light on the detector (13) is dependent on the angle of incidence of the light (11). An on-board computer (16) determines a direction vector to the Sun based on the light diffraction pattern detected by the detector (13). 
IP Reference US2019212413 
Protection Patent application published
Year Protection Granted 2019
Licensed No
Impact Patent applied for in: US, UK, EU, China, India, Russia, and Brazil
 
Title sistema de determinação de atitude 
Description trata-se de um instrumento 20 que determina a atitude de uma espaçonave 3 na qual o esmo está montado, por meio da interação da luz incidente 11 do sol com um ou mais elementos de condicionamento de luz 12 e, assim, formando um padrão de difração em um detector fotossensível 13. a distribuição de intensidade de luz no detector 13 depende do ângulo de incidência da luz 11. um computador integrado 16 determina um vetor de direção para o sol com base no padrão de difração de luz detectado pelo detector 13. 
IP Reference BR112019003356 
Protection Patent application published
Year Protection Granted 2019
Licensed No
Impact Patent applied for in: US, UK, EU, China, India, Russia, and Brazil