Radiation Hardened 10BASE-T Ethernet Physical Interface

Next generation instruments are capable of producing data at rates of 108 to 1011 bits per second, and both their instrument designs and mission operations concepts are severely constrained by data rate/volume. SpaceCube is an enabling technology for these next generation missions. SpaceCube has demonstrated enabling capabilities in Earth Science, Planetary, Satellite Servicing, Astrophysics and Heliophysics prototype applications such as on-board product generation, intelligent data volume reduction, autonomous docking/landing, direct broadcast products, and data driven processing with the ability to autonomously detect and react to events. SpaceCube systems are currently being developed and proposed for platforms from small CubeSats to larger scale experiments on the ISS and standalone free-flyer missions, and are an ideal fit for cost constrained next generation applications due to the tremendous flexibility (both functional and interface compatibility) provided by the SpaceCube system.

In traditional hardwired avionics systems, sensor integration requires installation of literally tons of physical cable that significantly increases vehicle weight and the time it takes to develop, maintain, and modify systems. Cabling also consumes space available for profitable payloads. Armstrong's technology uses software to incorporate new wireless capability without physically modifying existing avionics. How It Works Armstrong's gateway uses a software defined radio (SDR) to control the flow of information between various wireless devices and a vehicle's avionics. An SDR can be reprogrammed to communicate with a variety wireless communication protocols and frequencies via straightforward software modules—as opposed to wireless sensor-specific hardware—effectively eliminating the need to modify a vehicle's existing avionics hardware architecture. The gateway employs publish-subscribe network architecture. Before takeoff, flight computers reques—tor subscribe to—specific pieces of information from the SDR gateway. Wireless sensor devices then provide their respective sensor measurements to the SDR gateway, where they are distributed—or published—to any flight computer that has subscribed to a specific measurement. Why It Is Better Armstrong's technology simplifies the process of designing wireless avionics networks by providing a single point of communication between wireless and wired systems. It functions as a layer of abstraction between wireless sensors and the system with which they interface. This approach also ensures that no wireless device can directly communicate with a flight computer unless subscribed prior to takeoff, thus protecting the system from malicious or errant transmissions. Although specifically designed for aerospace systems, the gateway is both platform- and implementation-agnostic, with the potential to foster convergence between wireless technologies and existing systems in other industries. A manufacturer can add industrial Internet-of-Things capability without having to integrate new wireless interfaces into its preexisting network. The gateway serves as a universal interface with virtually any wireless device for such applications as connected logistics, predictive maintenance, asset tracking, and much more.

Initially developed for missions to Mars, Teletenna integrates RF and optical communication technologies to transmit data from deep space to Earth at extremely high speeds. The system combines a co-boresighted telescope and a Ka-band RF antenna to minimize system mass and enhance performance. Designed with an optimal focal length-to-diameter ratio, the apparatus features a classical Cassegrain geometry, including a sub-reflector in front of the RF feed which acts as a mirror for the optical signal while being transparent to the RF signal. The apparatus also mechanically and thermally isolates the RF reflector system from the optics to offer maximum stability. Teletenna was created to overcome two significant challenges to DSOC: 1) laser inefficiency due to poor alignment during spacecraft disturbances and 2) performance degradation due to lack of rigidity in vibrational environments (such as space). The first challenge is addressed by the telescope portion of this technology, which facilitates the acquisition and maintenance of the link with ease - even in less than ideal conditions. The second challenge is addressed by rigidly fixing the RF reflector to the spacecraft body and attaching the optical section to a vibration isolation platform. The result is a device that can point to within 0.5 degrees of the sun (traditional optical systems are limited to 3 degrees), allowing for approximately 20 extra days of contact time between Earth and Mars. By combining RF and optical communications, this breakthrough innovation has the power to transform communications as we know it. Glenn welcomes co-development opportunities.

This equilibrium-reversing-gate field effect transistor (ergFET) deploys an electrode near the gate of the transistor to control and reverse leakage currents which are typical in transistors and can lead to measurement errors. It can be built into an array to enable higher resolution imaging and is a solid state device free of moving parts. This enables portable and hand held sensor designs.

NASA's SDR uses Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) technology to enable flexible performance on orbit. A first-generation FM-modulated transceiver is capable of operating at up to 1 Mbps downlink and 50 kbps uplink, full duplex. An FPGA performs Reed-Solomon (255,223) encoding, decoding, and bit synchronization, providing Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) and Near Earth Network (NEN) telemetry protocol compatibility. The transceiver accepts data from the onboard flight computer via a source synchronous RS422 interface. NASA's second-generation full duplex SDR, known as PULSAR (programmable ultra-lightweight system-adaptable radio, Figures 1 and 2 below) incorporates command receiver and telemetry transmitters, as well as updated processing and power capabilities. An S-band command receiver offers a max uplink data rate of 300 Kbps and built-in QPSK demodulation. X- and S-Band telemetry transmitters offer a max downlink data rate of 150 Mbps and flexible forward-error correction (FEC) using Reed-Solomon encoding (LDPC rate 7/8 and 1/2 convolution in development), and it uses QPSK modulation. The use of FEC adds an order of magnitude increase in telemetry throughput due to an improved coding gain. An onboard FPGA uses high-speed logic for uplink/downlink and encoding/decoding processes. Balloon flight testing has been conducted and is ongoing for PULSAR.