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Highly accurate, flexible, robust and scalable multicamera system for spacecraft autonomous attitude determination through low cost cameras

Descripción del proyecto

Innovador sistema multicámara para determinar la actitud de las naves espaciales

Mirar las estrellas es fuente de inspiración para muchos, pero para los diseñadores de naves espaciales es una tarea crítica. Los sensores estelares surgieron en la década de los años noventa del siglo pasado para grandes satélites y eran equipos muy precisos pero caros. En la actualidad, el emergente mercado de los satélites pequeños les exige un tamaño, peso y potencia reducidos, y sobre todo tecnologías de bajo coste. Sin embargo, para hacer frente a tales requisitos, los actuales sensores estelares carecen de un rendimiento estable en el tiempo. Con esta idea en mente, un consorcio de pymes italianas ha concebido una innovación revolucionaria dirigida al mercado de los pequeños satélites: ARGO, un sistema multicámara que ofrece un rendimiento altamente preciso y estable en el tiempo a un precio asequible. El proyecto ARGO, financiado con fondos europeos, cofinancia el desarrollo, así como la validación en tierra y en órbita.

Objetivo

"The project addresses the sector of Spacecraft Attitude Determination from star measurements which is a critical element of the Attitude and Orbit Control System for any spacecraft. Nowadays the need of high accuracy for demanding satellite missions is achievable through high-quality star trackers, but high costs and lack of flexibility are still a gap to overcome for covering the needs of emerging space markets, like the ones related to low mass and size satellites, called SmallSats. The Consortium, composed by two high tech Italian SMEs, intend to pave the way towards next generation star tracker systems by proposing a disruptive innovation for this sector: ARGO, an innovative multicamera system for spacecraft autonomous attitude determination by means of star observation, able to offer high flexibility, robustness, accuracy, scalability and significant reduction of production costs compared to products currently on the market.
ARGO's main advances with respect to the state-of-art have been conceived, developed and successfully tested by EICAS in previous R&D activities. ARGO is ready for TRL6, having proved ARGO feasibility in relevant environment at TRL5 - through a preliminary night sky test campaign - by means of a prototype based on low-cost industrial cameras.
The purpose of this proposal is to accomplish the following steps necessary for fully exploiting the ARGO potential and reaching the commercialisation stage:
• from the scientific/technical point of view, to bring the ARGO technology readiness level up to TRL9, by developing a system completed and ""flight qualified"" through significant tests and demonstrations both ground and flight In Orbit Demonstrations (IOD)
• from the business point of view, to take the necessary actions with end-users and relevant stakeholders to accelerate and maximise the impact of the proposed disruptive innovation and to actuate the Consortium business strategy to reach the market.
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Convocatoria de propuestas

H2020-SMEInst-2016-2017

Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoria

Convocatoria de subcontratación

H2020-SMEINST-2-2016-2017

Régimen de financiación

SME-2 - SME instrument phase 2

Coordinador

EICAS AUTOMAZIONE SPA
Aportación neta de la UEn
€ 1 182 469,75
Dirección
VIA VINCENZO VELA 27
10128 TORINO
Italia

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Pyme

Organización definida por ella misma como pequeña y mediana empresa (pyme) en el momento de la firma del acuerdo de subvención.

Región
Nord-Ovest Piemonte Torino
Tipo de actividad
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
Enlaces
Coste total
€ 1 689 242,50

Participantes (1)