Attitude Determination & Control
ADCS computers, sensors and control software.
Custom development
We develop attitude-control electronics and algorithms for CubeSats and SmallSats. Custom sensor hardware and selected third-party equipment are integrated into a coordinated attitude determination and control system.
- Estimation & control
- Custom sensor electronics
- Third-party equipment integration
Key features
ADCS electronics and sensors
- Dedicated ADCS computer or ADCS application integrated with the spacecraft OBC.
- Sensor power distribution, readout electronics, timing and health monitoring.
- Coarse Sun sensor boards and analog or digital sensor interfaces.
- Fine Sun sensor development options with calibrated measurement processing.
- Magnetometer electronics, temperature compensation and calibration support.
- Gyroscope and IMU readout, bias estimation and timestamp handling.
- Reaction-wheel command interfaces and magnetorquer driver electronics.
- Configurable sensor orientation, alignment matrices and calibration parameters.
Estimation and control
- Quaternion-based attitude propagation and sensor fusion.
- Extended Kalman filter and mission-selected estimator architectures.
- Measurement validity checks, outlier rejection and degraded-sensor operation.
- Magnetic detumbling and rate damping.
- Sun acquisition, Sun pointing and power-positive safe modes.
- Nadir, inertial and target-pointing control.
- Commanded slews, settling management and actuator-limit handling.
- Wheel momentum management and magnetic unloading.
- Pointing knowledge, control error and stability maintained as separate budgets.
Spacecraft integration
- GNSS position/velocity inputs and onboard orbit propagation for reference generation.
- PPS synchronization and timestamped equipment data.
- Sensor and actuator current monitoring, isolation and reset control.
- Coordinated behavior during payload activity, communications and propulsion firing.
- Persistent telemetry, calibration records and fault/event history.
Sensor and actuator integration
| Equipment | Engineering scope |
|---|---|
| Sun sensors | Custom sensor/readout development and integration of selected units |
| Magnetometers | Sensor electronics, calibration, placement and magnetic-disturbance assessment |
| Gyroscopes / IMUs | Readout, synchronization, bias modeling and estimator integration |
| Star trackers / horizon sensors | Integration of selected third-party units, data validation and alignment |
| Reaction wheels | Equipment selection, interface integration, limits and momentum management |
| Magnetorquers | Driver electronics, command limits and integration of selected rods or coils |
| GNSS receivers | Position, velocity and timing interfaces; not an independent orbit-determination service |
Configuration options
| Area | CubeSat-oriented | SmallSat-oriented |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Integrated controller and compact sensor distribution | Distributed controller, sensors and actuator interfaces |
| Placement | Compact mounting and available faces | Separated sensors, alignment references and harness runs |
| Pointing | Mission-selected sensor and actuator set | Payload-driven pointing, jitter and structural interaction budgets |
| Fault tolerance | Validity checks, reset and safe modes | Selected sensor redundancy and reconfiguration paths |
| Interfaces | CAN and serial equipment links; board-level sensor buses | Distributed CAN/serial networks and selected higher-speed interfaces |
Verification and commissioning
Software simulation and hardware in the loop tests exercise initial rates, sensor noise, biases, dropouts, wheel saturation and timing errors. Calibration, mounting alignment and magnetic cleanliness are addressed before integration. Commissioning support includes telemetry review, parameter checks and controlled progression through operating modes.
Delivery
Controller electronics, embedded software, interface libraries, calibration data, simulation configuration and verification records are assembled into the delivered ADCS development.