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Author: Jens Janke

Falcon 9 rocket successfully deploys innovative technology to keep space sustainably clean

On Wednesday, June 30, at 21.31 hrs CEST a Falcon 9 by Space X took off to a transporter 2-mission from legendary spaceport Cape Canaveral, Florida. On board: Italian NewSpace company D-Orbit´s ION Satellite Carrier on its „Wild Ride“-mission with tech-passengers from 11 countries, among that HPS ADEO-N2, named „Show me your Wings“. ION was successfully separated from the launcher exactly one hour after liftoff.

The ION-platform itself will now seperate one payload after the other on their respective orbits for in-orbit validation tests, until finally the platform turns into a test object itself, since it will be brought back „home“ by ADEO, the world’s only industrial NewSpace drag sail of its kind for the multiple accelerated return of retired satellites. The idea behind it: „Just keep space „cleangreen“ by launching only what you have equipped with a device to bring it quickly back home after use“, says Ernst K. Pfeiffer, CEO of German spacetech company HPS. ADEO is available from HPS in different versions tailored to the size and weight of the spacecraft in question. In this case, it is one of the smallest versions, weighing just 800 grams, with dimensions of only 10x10x10 centimeters³ and a sail area of 3.6 square meters.

HPS CEO Ernst K. Pfeiffer is convinced that ADEO came at exactly the right time to promote sustainable NewSpace development by avoiding the threat of apocalyptic space debris scenarios, despite rapidly growing constellations. In this context, Pfeiffer emphasizes the excellent R&D support provided by engineers and test facilities of the DLR Institute of Space Systems in Bremen, as well as the various economic development support contracts and grants provided by ESA, DLR and the Free State of Bavaria.

The implementation of the technology developed by HPS’s NewSpace Team at Munich headquarters was largely supported by the hands of engineers and technicians of the Romanian subsidiary and Romanian workshops. This is now, according to Pfeiffer, „our clear advantage having all in one company: heritage from institutional space, a tailored „internal start-up department“, a steadily growing house in Bucharest and several trustful development and production partners. New and expanded challenges to innovation and manufacturing are already waiting.“

At the end of the nominal ION-mission, in front of its “eyes” of the integrated cameras, the ADEO braking sail module unfolds, shows its „wings“ and leads ION to residue-free disposal by incineration in the atmosphere much quicker than without the sail. The first 100 km of descent will be monitored intensively. This is planned to happen in a mission slot between December ´21 and January ´22. This mission now is the last verification in a series that also encompasses a first flight on Rocket Lab´s Electron in 2019 and several parabolic flights until 2021.

With this inflight-proof of maturity ADEO is targeted to go then into serial production for customers already waiting in the U.S., Europe and Asia.

HPS GmbH

Point of Contact: Dr. Ernst Pfeiffer, CEO
E-Mail: info@hps-gmbh.com
Telephone: +49 (89) 4520576-0

Europe has made its choice: HPS receives final GO to build HERA antenna which is to broadcast deep space showdown in 2024

The first defense mission of planet Earth against asteroid aggressors from space will be broadcasted live through an antenna in deep space built by Munich-based aerospace company HPS. It prevailed in two competitive preliminary design phase contracts within Europe. Experts are convinced that the HPS model offers the highest possible signal stability thanks to its extreme resistance to deformation in orbit and OHB Bremen, prime of the ESA mission, submitted this week the respective „Approval to proceed“ (ATP) to HPS for the rest of the development. The antenna must be delivered in November 2022 for the mission start in 2024. The schedule is tough: the critical design review will take place as early as September.
See also full story here: https://www.hps-gmbh.com/hera-high-noon-in-deep-space/

HPS GmbH

Point of Contact: Dr. Ernst Pfeiffer, CEO
E-Mail: info@hps-gmbh.com
Telephone: +49 (89) 4520576-0

Life saver KEAN: Satellite communication “to go“

Space specialists close innovation gap for threatening situations

In extreme cases, humans can do without many things for a certain period of time: clothing for months, depending on the weather, food for about three weeks and drinking water for up to three days. There is only one thing he really needs urgently and immediately: the possibility to communicate.

This applies to all life-threatening situations of both a civilian and military nature, to missions on the front line of aid in disaster areas, but also to journalistic reporting from cut-off places, to expeditions in remote regions, to police and intelligence special forces and, of course, also to military missions.

To date, the communications technology market for similar applications has been dominated by products with limited range, vulnerability to jamming and/or unwieldy dimensions and weight that can only be handled by vehicles.

To change this, under the consortium leadership of the Munich-based aerospace specialist for antenna technology HPS (Munich) the following partners have joined forces:

  • The antenna manufacturer MTEX (Wiesbaden, Germany) with a focus on ground stations
  • the start-up Blackwave (Ottobrunn) with the economic series production of complex carbon components
  • the Chair of Carbon Composites (LCC) at the Technical University of Munich for the conception of innovative lightweight reflector blade
  • the University of the German Armed Forces for defining user requirements and conducting antenna field tests.

The aim is to develop a complete system for bidirectional satellite communication on the basis of preliminary developments already carried out by HPS in the context of the program ILKA (“Integrated Deployable Lightweight Manpack Complete Antenna”) is a backpack antenna for communication “to go” (KEAN means deployable compact backpack antenna) with the following specifications:

  • Conformity to satellite operators (e.g. EUTELSAT, INTELSAT).
  • Ku-band, 1.2 m diameter, also X-band capable
  • Including communication system, electronics, battery, tripod, backpack carrying system
  • Total weight under 20 kg
  • Setup in under 15 minutes from backpack transport to satellite link
  • Innovative cybernetic folding mechanism based on the opening and closing of flowers
  • Design and definition of production-ready components and production processes for rapid transition to volume production in larger quantities.

HPS, MTEX and BLACKWAVE are contributing significant in-house funding; the DLR Space Agency, through its Telecommunications Department, is supporting the project with an additional 670.000 euros. From launch in April 2021 to the start of the test phase in fall 2022, only 18 months are planned for the entire development. After the concept definition now in July 2021, the detailed design of the complete system will follow. The main driver of the ambitious schedule is the commercial and institutional expressions of interest already triggered by the initial pre-development of the system, amongst others from the Indo-Pacific region.

 

HPS GmbH

Point of Contact: Dr. Ernst Pfeiffer, CEO
E-Mail: info@hps-gmbh.com
Telephone: +49 (89) 4520576-0

RUAG: Strategic Partnership Moves into the Next Round

RUAG Space | Media Relations | Schaffhauserstrasse 580 | 8052 Zurich | Switzerland | www.ruag.com

Media Release
Zurich, July 14, 2021
Strategic Partnership Moves into the Next Round

With the signing of the contract for the 5 th modification of the development and production contract (“Mod5) for the Atlas as well as Vulcan Centaur rocket
programs, United Launch Alliance (ULA) and RUAG Space extend and expand their successful cooperation.

In 2015, United Launch Alliance (ULA) announced a strategic partnership with RUAG Space to produce composite structures for the Atlas V rocket in the USA. The move was part of the transition from the Delta and Atlas rocket programs to the next generation of launch vehicles, the Vulcan family. The Vulcan Centaur launch vehicle will be used for both satellite launches and manned missions.

ULA_Vulcan

ULA_Vulcan

Over 120 successful ULA launches with RUAG Space products
As part of the strategic partnership, RUAG Space had set up shop in Decatur (US state of Alabama) in a 130,000-square-foot ULA building originally used for the Delta program and, following successful conversion, began operations in 2017. Until 2017, the structures were produced at RUAG Space’s sites in Zurich and Emmen, Switzerland. The last structure
manufactured in Emmen for the Atlas launch vehicle left Switzerland for the USA at the end of September 2020 on board an Antonov An-124. Now production is taking place directly on site in Decatur, where RUAG Space will also manufacture the carbon fiber structures for the new Vulcan launch vehicle in the future following the successful development and qualification. The payload fairings in composite technology – consisting of two half-shells that are mechanically joined together – are manufactured in a modern, partially automated process. RUAG Space’s payload fairings use a sandwich architecture of aluminum honeycomb material sandwiched between an inner and outer cover layer of woven carbon fiber. A cork layer applied to the exterior provides thermal protection against frictional heat generated during launch. Thanks to an innovative process, the carbon fiber structures required for the payload fairing can be manufactured without the use of an autoclave and thus more cost-effectively than in the conventional process.

RUAG Space

RUAG Space

The Decatur facility currently supplies carbon fiber composite structures for ULA’s Atlas launch vehicles, including the payload fairing for the Atlas V-500 launch vehicle and the interstage adapter for the Atlas V-400, as well as carbon fiber structures for qualification and future production of the new Vulcan launch vehicle, including payload fairings, interstage adapters and heat shields. Since the beginning of the strategic partnership between ULA and RUAG Space, more than 120 successful rocket launches have been carried out by ULA using RUAG Space products.

Cooperation extended and expanded
With the signing of the modification of the production contract (“Mod5”) between ULA and RUAG Space now completed, the successful cooperation enters the next round. While the production of the Atlas rocket and the development and qualification of the Vulcan components have been the focus so far, “Mod5” refers to orders until 2024. The additional order volume for RUAG Space from the contract modification amounts to 110 million Swiss francs. Holger Wentscher, who heads the Launchers product group at RUAG Space, says: “I would like to express my sincere thanks to ULA for the trust placed in us and for the cooperative partnership. With my colleagues at our Decatur facility, I look forward to continuing our shared success story.”

“The partnership between ULA and RUAG has been a vital part of our successes over the many years,“ says Daniel Caughran, ULA vice president of Productions, Operations and Supply Chain. “The recent contract modification reflects the ongoing trust and commitment to the partnership with RUAG Space as we proceed towards the first launch, and many future launches, of the Vulcan Centaur.”

This media release can be found here: https://www.ruag.com/news

RUAG International

Point of Contact: Philipp Bircher, Director Communications Space,
Phone: +41 79 790 11 8
Email: philipp.bircher@ruag.com

RUAG Space is the leading supplier to the space industry in Europe with a growing presence in the USA. Around 1,300 employees in six countries develop and manufacture products for satellites and launch vehicles – giving RUAG Space a central role in both the institutional and commercial space markets. RUAG International is a Swiss technology group with production sites in 14 countries and is divided into four divisions: Space, Aerostructures, MRO International and Ammotec. RUAG International employs around 6,500 people, of whom around two thirds work outside Switzerland. www.ruag.com

Automatic unfurling of European Large Deployable Reflector successfully demonstrated

ESA, HPS GmbH and LSS GmbH have reached an important milestone in the development of the European Large Deployable Reflector or LDR.

The team has demonstrated the automatic motorised deployment of the engineering model of the eight-metre wide antenna reflector.

The design, build and testing of this full-size engineering model is a significant step forward in the development of the European LDR that will be carried on the Copernicus Imaging Microwave Radiometer (CIMR) mission.

Read more at ESA.

LEA-X5: New Movie on the completion of the European 5m X-band LDRS

Gladly HPS announces with a new 20-minutes-movie the completion of the H2020-development „LEA-X5“, the 5m class European Large Deployable Reflector Subsystem (LDRS) operating in X-band.

The film itself is of course showing recent environmental and deployment tests, but it is mainly about PEOPLE, who are space engineers and space enthusiasts, and what they can achieve with combined powers and brains. These people, together with the enablers European Commission and European Space Agency, are making the achievement of „European Non-dependance“ happen.

LEA-X5 is a full LDRS-Subsystem (lead by HPS, Germany) and comprises the
• 5m diameter X-band reflector assembly (lead by LSS, Germany)
• the 5m long deployable arm assembly (lead by HPS, Germany),
• hinges & HDRMs (RUAG, DE),
• deployment electronics (vH&S, DE),
• thermal hardware (HPS/FHP).

Further partners of the H2020-consortium have been: INVENT (DE), FHP (PT), INEGI (PT), TICRA (DK), LUMA (SW), HPTEX (DE), ARQUIMEA(SP), HPS (RO), ETAMAX (DE), WSS (DE), ONERA (FR), TAS (FR), OHB (DE), Airbus (DE).
Most of the consortium members are introduced in the movie, inluding many interviews.

Take your time and enjoy the spirit of doing big things: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkpjUfyH5KE

Best regards,
Your WeLEA-Consortium

HPS GmbH

Point of Contact: Dr. Ernst Pfeiffer, CEO
E-Mail: info@hps-gmbh.com
Telephone: +49 (89) 4520576-0

European Premiere: arm and reflector of LEA-X5 successfully mated to form complete subsystem

Fifteen companies – mostly SMEs – from seven countries and one goal: a deployable 5-meter X-band-antenna as a preliminary development for the CIMR project, developed under the European H2020 program (2017-2021). For the first time ever, such a complete subsystem (HPS) has now been successfully assembled in Europe from the reflector- (LSS) and arm- (HPS) assemblies. Previously, the test deployment of the arm and reflector – each individually – had already been successfully passed.

LEA-X5-Subsystem is now at the premises of the consortium´s highly reliable test partner INTA in Spain, where vibration tests for the subsystem are on the agenda in the presence of the LSS- and HPS-teams. In a third round of testing, the subsystem will have to prove itself capable of withstanding the conditions of the thermal chamber.

The next complete subsystem-hardware in this context – the CIMR LDRS-EQM – will be assembled end 2023.

With the key technology behind LEA-X5, the continent is decisively expanding its independence from non-European sources.

HPS GmbH

Point of contact:  Dr. Ernst Pfeiffer, CEO
E-Mail: info@hps-gmbh.com
Phone: +49 (89) 4520576-0

Europe´s innovative deployable antenna technology takes the next hurdle: Test of LEA´s arm a full success

With the successful test of the Deployable Assembly Arm (DAA), which connects a Deployable Reflector Assembly (DRA) to the satellite, just completed at INEGI, the European LEA consortium led by HPS has cleared the next hurdle in the technical realization of Europe’s new antenna technology. The 5m long DAA consists of 3 hinge mechanisms and 2 HDRMs (both by RUAG Space Germany), Release Mechanisms (by Archimea, Spain), three CFRP tube segments (by INVENT, Germany), Metal Fittings (partly by HPS Romania), Deployment Control Electronics & EGSE (by von Hoerner & Sulger). Focus of the tests have been the verification of

a) the functional full deployment (which takes in total 25 min.),

b) a high pointing accuracy of the arm and

c) the verification of the mathematical thermo-elastic models.

INEGI (Portugal) is the main partner for the arm deployment test and a good partner of HPS for over 13 years now. INEGI was responsible for the zero-g simulation Test Stand and the Thermo-elastic Distortion Test Stand. Despite the pandemic and all restrictions, the teams could manage this progress with highest motivation and closest possible contact between the INEGI/HPS team on-site in Porto and the HPS-engineers in Germany. HPS is responsible for the DAA and also for the implementation management of the whole LEA-activity.

The total LEA-team encompasses 15 partners from 7 countries; the program started in the framework of H2020 in November 2017. The arm deployment test and the TED-test (thermo-elastic distortion) was one of the last tests of this H2020 activity.

The next step – starting still in March – is the environmental test (vibration and thermal vacuum) of the full LDR-Subsystem (Reflector, Arm and HDRM, all connected), which will be performed at INTA in Madrid, Spain.

“LEA-X5” (5m reflector diameter, 5m arm length, X-band application for Earth Observation and Telecommunications) is meanwhile seen as one of the precursing technology developments for the current Copernicus CIMR Mission.

HPS GmbH

Point of contact:  Dr. Ernst Pfeiffer, CEO
E-Mail: info@hps-gmbh.com
Phone: +49 (89) 4520576-0

Multi-hinge solar array deployment mechanism for Copernicus on ZeroG robot

upported by the ESA GSTP, STI today reached the next milestone with the start of the verification process of a 5-hinge-axes solar array deployment system, as will be used for the Copernicus expansion satellites, on a Zero-g robot (called “ZeroG”). Qualification is planned to be completed mid 2021.

Solar array wings – state of the art

Efficient power generation is a key factor in satellite development: High performance satellite instruments and platforms often have high power requirements that can only be generated by big surface solar arrays. Due to limited launcher capacity and excessive loads during launch, the solar array panels of most satellites need to be stored in a small volume during launch and are deployed after separation from the launcher. Depending on the required power the deployment mechanism contains one or more hinge axes. While single-hinge deployment mechanisms can be relatively basic spring-driven mechanisms, multi-hinge deployment mechanisms are typically complex mechanisms containing motors and cables that perform a slow and synchronized deployment of the solar array wings. Unfortunately, these designs tend to be heavy, reliability critical and expensive.

A new approach to multi-hinge deployments

After having developed, built and delivered a range of body fixed and single-hinge solar arrays, SpaceTech (STI) has started the development of a new type of multi-hinge deployment mechanisms some years ago. This development resulted in the controlled unsynchronized deployment mechanism concept relying on C-spring hinges with torque-limiters to achieve a robust deployment into a defined deployment corridor. It significantly reduces the deployable solar array wing complexity, weight and cost. STI has successfully applied the design in several activities, both for institutional and commercial missions. Perhaps most prominently are the 1800 solar array deployment mechanisms that we deliver to OneWeb, 220 of which are already in orbit. Half a year ago, STI delivered the first solar array with 5 hinge axes for Momentus smallest satellite “Vigoride”. Also, mid 2020, STI was selected by Thales, Airbus and OHB to provide the solar array wings for the EU Copernicus Expansion Satellites CHIME, CO2M, CRISTAL and LSTM, also with up to 5 hinges axes, but significantly larger panels. This indicating that our designs are not only cost efficient, but also meet the highest space mission standards.  

Design and verify

One of the challenges of the controlled unsynchronized deployment mechanism is to ensure a safe deployment under all mission scenarios. This requires a high level of system design understanding and modelling of the specific design and environment during deployment. In addition, the verification of such a fast deployment requires new approaches for a ZeroG test rig that is capable to provide realistic g-compensation during different deployment scenarios for a wide range of solar array wings from 1 to up to 5 hinge axes.

CarboSpaceTech’s ZeroG robot for realistic multi-hinge deployment testing

One of the key pieces of the puzzle to the STI multi-hinge development is the unique zero gravity testing robot ZeroG by SpaceTech’s innovative daughter company, CarboSpaceTech. Unlike traditional g-compensation measures, like rigs with long cables or Helium balloons, which are severely limited in dynamic situations, ZeroG is able to actively react in real time to the movement of the test object. Thus eliminating the impact of gravity with multiple, independent manipulators – one for each of the connected solar panels.

Watch the video.

Learn more about SpaceTech GmbH

SpaceTech GmbH (STI)

Point of Contact: Dr. Kolja Nicklaus
E-Mail: business@spacetech-i.com
Telephone: +49 (7545) 932 84 86

ASP Equipment delivers the EQM of the Power Supply Unit (PSU) for Kompsat 7 (K7)

The purpose of the KOMPSAT (KOrean Multi Purpose SATellite) is to provide high-resolution pictures for the purpose of precise earth observation from a low polar earth orbit. The satellite is equipped with a very accurate optical imaging camera and a high-resolution infrared sensor which allows to observe fire, volcanic activity and urban thermal islands during day and night and under any weather condition. K7 succeeds the previous model of KOMPSAT-3A.

The PSU is a unique power system, developed and manufactured by ASP-Equipment and consists of two electronic units which are combined in a single mechanical housing. The purpose is to supply secondary power to the panchromatic band camera and the multi spectral band camera. It features 24 highly accurate power outputs, as well as a TC/TM-interface and controlled heater outputs. The PSU contains a total of 8 individual designed, manufactured and tested modules and underlines the capability of ASP to contribute to state of the art spacecraft with outstanding power product solutions.

 

Advanced Space Power Equipment GmbH (ASP)
Point of Contact: Thomas Hintze
E-Mail: t.hintze@asp-equipment.de
Telephone: +49 (7553) 5909-233