Class
Article
Graduation Year
2020
College
College of Engineering
Department
Computer Science Department
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Jan Sojka
Presentation Type
Poster Presentation
Abstract
When confronted with the prospect of acquiring reliable embedded software for SmallSats, university SmallSat teams — especially those that consist primarily of undergraduates — are often faced with a variety of challenges. Existing software solutions for SmallSats are targeted towards SmallSat companies, working professionals, or users with otherwise graduate-level academic knowledge and background. Additionally, these software solutions are most commonly designed for the specific architecture of off-the-shelf, on-board SmallSat computers — a luxury that often finds itself beyond the budget of university teams.
As a result, such teams frequently write embedded software from scratch. This can be a long and difficult undertaking, as such software necessitates a certain level of complexity and typically has limited reusability mission-to-mission. The purpose of OpenSPA — an abbreviation of “open-source, Space Plug-and-play Architecture” — is to address these issues.
Space Plug-and-play Architecture is a standard networking and transport protocol developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory and further compounded upon by Dr. Jacob Holt Christensen and the Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL). It is currently used by SDL as well as the Air Force for various SmallSat missions, and has earned a proven mission-success record over the years. However, no SPA services manager is currently available to the general public.
The goal of OpenSPA is to serve as a SPA services manager specifically targeted towards the needs, ability, and hardware of undergraduate SmallSat teams. The project aims to develop along these principles in accordance with the publicly documented SPA protocols using C++. This presents a range of areas that necessitate further research and choices in design, such as the strict avoidance of dynamic memory allocation when using the C++ Standard Template Library, developing implementation details that are absent from the SPA protocol outline, and gearing the final versions of the software towards being a solution useable by undergraduate-level users.
Early versions of OpenSPA are to be tested in the coming months on high-altitude weather-balloon flights carrying prototype CubeSat hardware.
Location
North Atrium
Start Date
4-13-2017 1:30 PM
End Date
4-13-2017 2:45 PM
OpenSPA: an Open-Source Software Solution for University SmallSat Teams
North Atrium
When confronted with the prospect of acquiring reliable embedded software for SmallSats, university SmallSat teams — especially those that consist primarily of undergraduates — are often faced with a variety of challenges. Existing software solutions for SmallSats are targeted towards SmallSat companies, working professionals, or users with otherwise graduate-level academic knowledge and background. Additionally, these software solutions are most commonly designed for the specific architecture of off-the-shelf, on-board SmallSat computers — a luxury that often finds itself beyond the budget of university teams.
As a result, such teams frequently write embedded software from scratch. This can be a long and difficult undertaking, as such software necessitates a certain level of complexity and typically has limited reusability mission-to-mission. The purpose of OpenSPA — an abbreviation of “open-source, Space Plug-and-play Architecture” — is to address these issues.
Space Plug-and-play Architecture is a standard networking and transport protocol developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory and further compounded upon by Dr. Jacob Holt Christensen and the Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL). It is currently used by SDL as well as the Air Force for various SmallSat missions, and has earned a proven mission-success record over the years. However, no SPA services manager is currently available to the general public.
The goal of OpenSPA is to serve as a SPA services manager specifically targeted towards the needs, ability, and hardware of undergraduate SmallSat teams. The project aims to develop along these principles in accordance with the publicly documented SPA protocols using C++. This presents a range of areas that necessitate further research and choices in design, such as the strict avoidance of dynamic memory allocation when using the C++ Standard Template Library, developing implementation details that are absent from the SPA protocol outline, and gearing the final versions of the software towards being a solution useable by undergraduate-level users.
Early versions of OpenSPA are to be tested in the coming months on high-altitude weather-balloon flights carrying prototype CubeSat hardware.