by Bruce Wiebusch, Regional Editor --
Design News,
November 5, 2001
ADVERTISEMENT
Sponsored Content
Technology Marketplace
Vimodrone, Italy—When the interplanetary probe Giotto lost connection with its ground operations while tracking Halley's Comet, recovering the lost satellite became a primary concern for its manufacturer Laben, an Italian aerospace company. Laben engineers surmised that when dust particles from the comet's tail contacted the probe, it caused the misalignment of the onboard aerial with Earth.
Giotto was millions of miles from Earth. Unlike the international space station, which is sometimes maintained by crews of astronauts, Giotto had to rely on its own system design for any chance of recovery.
The on-board data handling (OBDH) system designed with I-DEAS a design and manufacturing application from SDRC (Milford, OH, now called EDS PLM Solutions), became the critical component in the satellite's recovery. "The link absence was detected by the on-board computer, part of the OBDH, and re-established," says Laben's Operations Manager, Demetrio Masaro. "As soon as the connection was lost, the event triggered a software routine that initiated a maneuver to 'search ground'."
The Giotto satellite was later directed toward another comet, Grigg-Skjellerup. Such missions help map the universe for interplanetary space exploration.
For more information about mechanical design software from SDRC: Enter 538
JUNE 26TH WEBCAST: Collaborative Requirements Engineering
Speed your innovation. Capture the "voice of the customer" and translate customer requests into user requirements that define new products. Find out why the new ENOVIA Requirements Management solution enables organizations to improve their overall global requirements management process. Read More
Mechatronics in action
Successful synergistic integration of controls, electronics, computers and mechanical systems is key to the 21st century design process. Unlock the secrets at the Mechatronics Zone!
Webcast: Sensor Know-How Now
Join our moderator Randy Frank and John Keating from Cognex and explore Solving Industrial Inspection Problems. Read More
Engineering Concept Conduit
Engineering Concept Conduit looks at new products and the components that make them exceptional. Each month we’ll look at a new electronic product and see what makes it tick from an engineering point of view. We’ll explore the design and engineering challenges for the product and examine the components that solved those challenges.
Light Matters: Systems Level Approach to HBLED illumination applications
Its good practice to apply a systems-level approach to high-brightness LED (HBLED) illumination applications. Minimally, the system includes the optical, thermal and electrical characteristics of the of the HBLED, the lens (if any) which is built-in to its package, secondary optics such as external plastic lenses/reflectors to direct the light as your application requires and power driver electronics. Read More