Software Designs and Simulates Fault Protection System for NASA's Deep Impact

Simulink® and Stateflow® simulation and model-based design software

The MathWorks

Natick, MA

508-647-7000

www.mathworks.com

As the complexity of spacecraft missions has increased over the years, so has the need to properly ensure the correctness of a design at the earliest stage possible. Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, CA, used The MathWorks Simulink and Stateflow software to design the Fault Protection System for the Deep Impact project, a mission that sent a pair of mated spacecraft to encounter the comet Tempel-1 and explore its internal structure. The purpose of the Fault Protection System was to eliminate single-point failures and their effects, and ensure spacecraft system integrity.

By using Stateflow, JPL engineers completed design debugging using computer simulations early in the design process, which resulted in the identification and correction of design issues before the system integration occurred. Once the design of the fault protection system was determined, "C" code running on die spacecraft was generated from the computer model. This automation reduced the risk of introducing coding errors into the fault protection software.

When Deep Impact separated from the launch vehicle, the spacecraft computer detected higher than expected temperatures in the propulsion system, at which point it went into safe mode, where it was able to successfully execute mission events associated with commencing spaceflight operations. Data received from the spacecraft indicated that it deployed and locked its solar panels, received power, and achieved proper orientation in space.

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Copyright Associated Business Publications Oct 2005
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