embotec h GmbH | Physikstrasse 3 | CH-8092 Zurich
To space and back
Zurich, November 3, 2016 – ETH Spin-Off
embotech today announced the start of a development project for the Future Launchers Preparatory Program (FLPP) of the European Space
Agency (ESA). The project titled “On- board realtime trajectory generation” will bring European
space capabilities one step closer to automated,
flexible launch mission planning and reusable
launcher technology, enabling the autonomous
return of launch vehicles to earth.
Currently, a significant amount of time and effort
is spent on planning the path a spacecraft will
take from launch until the end of the mission.
Current guidance and control systems have to
rely on these precomputed scenarios and have
only very limited possibilities to react to unforeseen changes such as system failures or lastminute mission changes.
embotech will use its automatic code-generation
tool FORCES Pro to implement an online guidance and control tool that will make it possible to
compute optimal spacecraft trajectories on-board
in real-time for a variety of space flight scenarios.
The technology, which is already used to optimize energy management in next-generation
long-haul trucks [1] and optimally control industrial robots [2], will be further improved to meet
the demanding software standards that are necessary to ensure reliable and safe space flight.
“We are excited and honored to be given the
chance to use our mathematical optimization
technology to advance european aerospace capabilities”, says embotech CEO Dr. Juan Jerez.
“This project will also improve the performance
and robustness of FORCES Pro, which will benefit our current and future customers all over the
world. The same tools and algorithms that can
get a launcher from earth to orbit, Moon, or Mars
can also be used to take decisions on autonomous cars or quadrotors”, as shown by the autonomous RC car racing project [3] at the Automatic Control Lab at ETH Zurich.
Being able to change path during mission execution and re-compute an optimized trajectory onboard the vehicle can significantly reduce the
Disclaimer: The view expressed in this document can in no way be
taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Space Agency.
time and cost for complex missions and is a necessary requirement for reusable launchers like
the SpaceX Falcon 9. These launchers are exposed to highly variable conditions during reentry and have to react in real-time to unforeseeable atmospheric effects to arrive at the landing
site with pinpoint precision. Together with experts
from ESA ESTEC and FLPP in Noordwijk and
Paris, embotech will work towards making Europe’s launchers more flexible.
About embotech
Numerical optimization software by embotech [4]
powers complex real-time decision making engines in a variety of applications such as autonomous cars, propulsion systems, energy management systems, wind turbines, robotic manipulators and intelligent infrastructure.
Relevant links
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
w ww.embotech.com/References/Volvo-AB
w ww.embotech.com/References/ABB-Corpor ate- Research
control.ee.ethz.ch/~racing/
w ww.embotech.com