ESA Open Invitation to Tender AO9234
Open Date: 05/03/2018
Closing Date: 16/04/2018 13:00:00
Status: ISSUED
Reference Nr.: 18.1MS.02
Prog. Ref.: ExPeRT MarsX
Budget Ref.: E/0116-11M – ExPeRT MarsX
Special Prov.: AT+BE+CH+CZ+DE+DK+ES+FR+GB+GR+IE+IT+NL+NO+PL+PT+RO+SE+CA
Tender Type: C
Price Range: 200-500 KEURO
Products: Satellites & Probes / AOCS & GNC / Guidance Navigation Control (GNC) / Other
Techology Domains: Space System Control / Control Systems Innovative Technologies / GNC Technologies for Cruise, Rendezvous and Docking or Capture
Establishment: ESTEC
Directorate: Dir of Human & Robotic Exploration Prog.
Department: Exploration Group
Contract Officer: Kaysan, Juliette
Industrial Policy Measure: N/A – Not apply
Last Update Date: 06/03/2018
Update Reason: Modified the Contract Condition (English version)
The aim of the activity is to delta-develop the existing navigation algorithms developed under ESA contract4000104063 (MREP Integrated GNC for Mars Rendezvous and Capture: iGNC) in a more efficient manner inparticular with regards to short-range navigation phase. This development shall meet the needs of the MarsSample Return orbiter mission during the rendezvous and capture with the Orbiting Sample, and more ingeneral that it may be used in other rendezvous missions.The outcome of the iGNC activity defined the RdV baseline architecture to use two navigation cameras: oneNarrow Angle Camera (NAC) with 5deg FOV for the long-range phase and one WideAngle Camera (WAC)with 20deg FOV for the short-range phase of operations.Therefore there is a need for accurate vision-based navigation to correctly guide the spacecraft in its operations.Current cameras are being developed for vision-based navigation in planetary entry, descent and landingapplications, e.g. the VBNS unit for Phobos Sample Return mission study. The deliverables of this runningactivity are a 20deg FOV WAC elegant breadboard EBB (TRL 4), and an Image Processing Board (IPB)Engineering Model (TRL 6) that includes the use of the European BRAVE FPGA with the image processingalgorithms embedded as HDL. Two spacewire links will be available to connect two possible cameras to theIPB. Both the WAC EBB and the IPB EM shall serve as CFI elements to the new activity. The development ofa new NAC Elegant BB shall be undertaken in the proposed activity.Furthermore the activity shall assess the environment characteristics to which the cameras will be subjectedduring the MSR orbiter mission. The conditions of operation shall be modelled for the high fidelity simulationof the images (temperature variations, radiation, vibration environment, contamination) andcaptured in atechnical note in the form of requirements to create an EQM of the VBNS cameras. In addition, while the focusof the activity is on cameras, the use of a LIDAR as well in the sensor package shall be studied as a backup tothe camera-only solution.The performance shall be assessed in high fidelity closed-loop simulation and through real-time Hardware-Inthe-Loop testing. During performance tests the performance of the stand-alone cameras shall be evaluated in afirst iteration. Following these tests the cameras shall be integrated in representative GNC environment tests.
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