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Avionics

Our experience in the design and manufacture of Avionics for spacecraft and launcher re-entry vehicles spans several decades. Such insight enables us to solve complex design and operational challenges to improve performance, save space, reduce weight and maximise power efficiency for increasingly sophisticated spacecraft and payloads.

Our highly versatile Advanced Data and Power Management System – ADPMS – lies at the heart of our avionics capabilities.

Long Heritage – Exceptional Reliability

The ADPMS is a state-of-the-art avionics platform for Small & Medium satellites (PROBA series, ESA IXV shuttle).

Design Agility – High Performance

The ADPMS is highly adaptable and configurable and its ‘plug-and-play’ architecture gives the high-bandwidth, simplicity and reliability required for different types of satellite missions. The system’s modularity harnesses a range of advanced subsystems, including:

  • OBC L3. A highly powerful space computer offering onboard processing power, system management and basic interfacing functionalities.
  • RTU. A comprehensive set of interface modules to control and monitor onboard devices/units – standard, AOCS control and special I/Os are available.
  • PCDU 100. A complete Power Conditioning (solar, battery, busses) and Distribution Unit
  • PDHU & MM. Payload Data Handling Unit intended for on-board data acquisition, storage and playback capability. It fits to EO, Space Science missions and spacecraft Payloads control.
Avionics
Software Defined Radio Platform
Stormforce 2 software defined radio platform was developed to satisfy a specific customer requirement for a reconfigurable platform to meet the demanding processing requirements of current and future wideband satellite communication waveforms, such as DVB (DVB-DSNG, DVB-S, DVB-S2), and legacy waveforms such as INTELSAT (IBS, IDR). It is a high-end ‘solution to demodulate and decode standard and non-standard Satcom transmissions.

What are the benefits of Stormforce 2?
  • Easily updated in response to ongoing technological advances, with replaceable mezzanine cards – essentially circuit boards – providing an effective interface between applications.
  • Designed for the requirements of large-scale installations where a single web server can be used to control and monitor as many receivers as required.
  • Highly cost-effective. For low rate applications, multiple virtual receivers within each physical channel allow reception of multiple downlinks within the same instantaneous receiver bandwidth. This significantly increases the number of received downlinks without the need for additional capital investment.
Unique selling points

Operating more discreetly than other systems and delivering significant tactical advantage, the electronic footprint of Stormforce 2 is less than a quarter of Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) demodulating and decoding receivers.

The small platform has a single 19” chassis that provides a compact, flexible and upgradable solution for receiving a large volume of downlinks. Low throughput applications can capitalise on the bidirectional nature of each channel to provide two independent modems on a single platform. 

Contact us

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Working for QinetiQ's Space team

QinetiQ’s space division works in a variety of spatial projects: satellites, science instruments, life support systems, baffles, docking systems… Our employees explain how it is to work with such out of this world projects!