MicroADS - Spacecraft Attitude Determination System

为了正确运行，航天器需要能够确定其相对于其他一个或多个物体的方向（“姿态”）。通常情况下，这是目前实现的仪器，如星星跟踪器和太阳传感器。通常，每个航天器都需要多个仪器才能在所有方向上提供足够的视场，对于太阳传感器来说，光源方向矢量的每个分量都需要单独的仪器是很常见的。此外，当使用太阳传感器时，通常会使用单独的检测器，这些检测器分别具有低精度但宽视场（粗糙太阳传感器）和高精度但小视场（精细太阳传感器）。现有的星星跟踪器和太阳传感器通常相对较大（每个仪器高达500立方厘米），并且可能很重（每个仪器数百克）。由于体积和质量都是航天器的重要组成部分，因此，开发一种低质量、低体积的姿态确定系统，既能提供高精度、宽视场，又能减少每颗卫星所需的仪器数量，对工业界和学术界都是极其宝贵的。苏塞克斯大学发明了一种新型的姿态确定系统，该系统的工作原理与现有仪器不同。这个名为MicroADS的系统采用了一种新颖的光学架构，与同类系统相比，它具有更宽的视场和更高的精度。MicroADS也明显更小，质量更低。这项发明已经申请了专利。该STFC IPS项目将提高MicroADS仪器的技术准备水平，以便在项目结束时快速商业化，为英国带来技术，科学和经济效益。

In order to operate correctly, spacecraft need to be able to determine their orientation ("attitude") relative to some other object or objects. Typically, this is currently achieved using instruments such as star trackers and sun sensors. Often, multiple instruments are required per spacecraft to give sufficient field-of-view in all directions, and it is common with sun sensors for separate instruments to be required for each of the components of the direction vector to the light source. Furthermore, when sun sensors are used, it is common to have separate detectors that, respectively, have a low accuracy but a wide field of view (coarse sun sensors), and a high accuracy but a small field of view (fine sun sensors). Existing star trackers and sun sensors are often relatively large (up to ~500cm^3 per instrument) and can be heavy (hundreds of grams per instrument). Since volume and mass are both at a premium on spacecraft, the development of a low-mass, low-volume attitude determination system that offers high accuracy, a wide field-of-view, and that can reduce the number of instruments required per satellite, would be extremely valuable to both industry and academia. A novel type of attitude determination system that works on a different principle to existing instruments has been invented at University of Sussex. The system called MicroADS exploits a novel optical architecture to deliver a wider field-of-view and better accuracy than comparable systems. MicroADS is also significantly smaller and lower mass. A patent for the invention has been filed. This STFC IPS project will raise the technology readiness level of the MicroADS instrument such that it can be rapidly commercialised at the end of the project in order to bring technological, scientific and economic benefit to the UK.