Project description
European solution for on-orbit servicing
The European Commission Horizon 2020 Strategic Research Cluster, the European Space Agency (ESA) and initiatives of national agencies foster European competitiveness of global space systems. The EU-funded EROSSplus project will design an on-orbit servicing and assembly demonstration mission for future commercial European robotic missions. The project will create a European solution for servicers for LEO/GEO satellites, relying on advanced robotics technologies developed with the support of the European Commission, ESA and other national entities. EROSSplus integrates advanced European technologies from sensors and actuators to software frameworks and algorithms, aiming to raise these building blocks to technologies demonstrated in the relevant environment for space applications (technology readiness level 6).
Objective
EROSS+ (European Robotic Orbital Support Services +) objective is to design the future on-orbit servicing and assembly demonstration mission that will address the most prominent market. The goal is to build an European solution for the Servicers and the future serviced LEO/GEO satellites leveraging on key robotic technologies developed in the past years thanks to the European Commission H2020 Strategic Research Cluster (SRC), the European Space Agency and national agencies initiatives.
This project gather all the key players who will shape the future space ecosystems and foster European competitiveness into this global shifting paradigm that space economy is facing. EROSS+ brings in a concept of a demonstration mission that will cover the full rendezvous phase of a collaborative and prepared client satellite including the capture, the servicing operations (refuelling, payload exchange, repair) and also in-orbit assembly. This will enable to validate the capabilities to perform all the future on orbit operations.
EROSS+ embeds key European technologies from sensors, actuators to software frameworks and algorithms. The aim being to raise up to TRL6 these building blocks for space applications and increase their functionalities and performances in a coherent work programme that targets the demonstration of the developed solutions in space for 2025. EROSS+ mission will pave the way for the future of commercial European space robotic missions. This Mission Study (phases 0/A/B1), will validate previous developments of the SRC, achieved through I3DS and integrated within EROSS. With EROSS+, EU with the support of Thales Alenia Space follows its plan to achieve a multi-purpose servicer demonstration for the Short term servicing business up to long term horizons. The project success relies on a highly skilled and space experienced consortium involving key actors of previous SRC Operational Grants which gathers 6 partners from 6 countries over 24 months with a budget of 3 M€.
Fields of science
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftware
- engineering and technologymechanical engineeringvehicle engineeringaerospace engineeringsatellite technology
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensors
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringrobotics
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinator
31100 Toulouse
France