NASA’s recent move toward sensor-web mission architectures requires a corresponding upgrade to its payload controls systems. NASA payloads will now interface to a new NASA standard Experimenter Interface Panel (EIP), presented here. The EIP provides a standard networked AC and DC power interface. Each unit monitors DC power and environmental conditions. EIPs house a 12 port Ethernet switch to enable a 1000BASE-T payload network.
NASA Airborne Science Data and Telemetry System (NASDAT)
Flight navigation computers are used to record state variables on aircraft motion and atmospheric conditions during a flight mission. This data is used to assist scientists and engineers in interpreting data from their payloads during and after a flight mission. ASP has recently upgraded the onboard flight computers with the NASDAT systems, which provide a stable on board computer for capturing flight data and providing a multi-channel telemetry feed for payload and aircraft information. These systems are standard on the core aircraft, and spares are available for use on other NASA and non-NASA aircraft.
Executive summary – The purpose of the NASDAT unit:
1) Records the platform flight trajectory by ingesting the output of the aircraft inertial navigation system, for post-flight correlation with the science instrument data collected.
2)Captures the state data generated by the aircraft pitot-static system and Air Data Computer, to include pressure transducers, static and dynamic air temperatures, barometric pressures, Mach numbers, velocity vectors, etc.; which are critical to interpreting in situ air samples.
3) Functions as an Ethernet network host/server for the payload data system, and a gateway to broadband sat-com telemetry systems.
4) Provides an Iridium communications command and control link for the payload instruments, and limited science data transmission.
Executive summary – The purpose of the Experimenter Interface Panel EIP):
Each EIP box supports up to four instruments with power and communications, using standardized connectors:
Four Connectors, each with:
Two circuits of 3ф, 400Hz AC (10 Amps/phase)
Two circuits of 28V-DC power (15 Amps ea.)
Voltage and Current Reporting via Ethernet
Four Cockpit Control and Safety Interlock circuits
One connector of Hi-power 28V-DC (70 amps)
8 -100Mb & 2 -1Gb Ethernet ports for NASDAT network & sat-com access
Aircraft legacy state data (RS-232, -422, AIRINC-429, Synchro, IRIG-B)
Executive summary – The purpose of the Link Module:
1)The Link Module is a general-purpose payload computer, and an optional peripheral on the NASDAT Ethernet network (mandatory on Global Hawk)
2)Provides a dual CPU and 500 GB of mass storage for investigator use (e.g. onboard data reduction, product generation, etc.)
3)Captures science data into a real-time data base, and handles data queries and downloads via sat-com
4)Has the high-speed serial interface required by many broadband sat-com systems
5)Controls the Satellite Modem Assembly (SMA) on the Global Hawk Ku-Band sat-com system