Home Contact News


Applications Products Services Support About EuroSim

EuroSim

Applications

< previous application next application >
Euclid AOCS Simulation Facility
Euclid AOCS Simulation Facility

Objective PARDON OUR DUST, PAGE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION

The Euclid spacecraft requires extreme pointing accuracy to allow its instruments to make its observations. The AOCS development is performed by Sener Aerospacial and Airbus Defence and Space Netherlands B.V. As part of this activity, Airbus Defence and Space Netherlands B.V. developed the AOCS closed loop realtime simulator. This realtime simulator has been used in the hybrid realtime benches HILF/AVM/PFM also developed by Airbus as well as in the software validation facility developed by SpaceBel.

Context

Euclid is an ESA mission to map the geometry of the Universe and better understand the mysterious dark matter and dark energy, which make up most of the energy budget of the cosmos. The mission will investigate the distance-redshift relationship and the evolution of cosmic structures by measuring shapes and redshifts of galaxies and clusters of galaxies out to redshifts ~2, or equivalently to a look-back time of 10 billion years. In this way, Euclid will cover the entire period over which dark energy played a significant role in accelerating the expansion of the Universe. (Quoting https://sci.esa.int/web/euclid)

Euclid AOCS Simulation Facility EThe picture is showing the Euclid Hardware in the Loop Facility (HILF) while being tested in the Airbus clean room. The facility contains an engineering model of the onbaord computer with cable harnes connected to the Special Checkout Operations Equipment (SCOE). The SCOE is am Airbus ESPRiT 19 inch rack filled with front-end equipment and integrating the simulation server running EuroSim and models. Beside the SCOE rack is a smaller 19inch rack containing the Airbus ESPRiT TMTC front-end and power equipment. For spacecraft operations via TMTC the Terma TSC application is used.

Role of EuroSim

A single EuroSim simulator that can run both in combination with an emulator as well as with hardware in the loop has been integrated in the software only SVF and the hybrid benches. The equipment models are configurable to either simulate equipment or support hardware in the loop, supporting easy baseline control as well as the important comparibility between the facilities such that simulation results could be easily correlated in all cases. This approach was supported by the MRA architecture and its supporting libraries and interface models. The latter incorporated the mil1553 and discrete signal models with the out Airbus ESPRiT plugin products to connect to the ESPRIT discrete and AIM 1553 front-end hardware. The Airbus ESPRiT EDEN server product was installed to interface EuroSim to the TSC mission control software product from Terma over the EDEN protocol. In the system SVF the entire EuroSim simulator has been integrated as an SMP2 model in the SpaceBel developed SVF using EuroSim's embedded simulation solution. With this solution Airbus created a system level SVF with closed loop AOCS capability, operable from TSC.


Left arrow Up arrow