packages on board to start the motor and turn the shaft until the sensors provide
feedback that they are at the commanded position. The rotator holds the payload
at that position until commanded otherwise.
The rotator is designed to provide a 5 arc-minute pointing capability, and it has
demonstrated a 1.4 arc-minute accuracy. The motor has a 28 volt battery source.
The system is designed to operate in a thermal range of –80°C to +50°C (–112°F
to +122°F). The system can also accommodate a slip ring which has 20 channels
for power, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) link, and Addressable Asynchronous
Receive Transmit (AART) communications.
SCAPS features a hollow titanium shaft, 3D printed solar sensor mounts, 3D
printed avionics package mounts, and a custom motor frame mount. The system
also uses 3D printed templates to standardize the assembly of both rotators, so that
non-uniform match drilling is not a problem.
Consolidated Instrument Package
CSBF has developed a command and data acquisition system for routine use in the
balloon program. User interface and balloon control is accomplished using several
mature electronic systems which retrieve science data as well as provide the essential control functions for safe and successful ballooning.
The Consolidated Instrument Package (CIP) is the command and data acquisition system utilized on conventional balloon flights. It is a self-contained electronics package that is readily configured to fit the individual needs of science groups.
It fulfills the functional requirements of transmitting CSBF housekeeping as well
as user-generated analog or digital data, and it receives science and balloon control
commands sent from the control tower or tracking aircraft but not from satellites.
CIP is made up of a card rack containing printed circuit boards that provide the
means for receiving and decoding commands, subcarrier oscillators, pulse code
modulation (PCM) encoder, dual GPS receivers, pressure transducers, ATC Air
Traffic Control (ATC) transponder and RF transmitters. It employs a 16-bit data
word and can accommodate 77 discrete commands.
Support Instrument Package
As part of the equipment provided to science teams this enables their payload to
communicate with both the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS)
and Iridium system of low Earth orbit satellites to provide a command path and
return telemetry if the payload is out of line of sight. Commands to the payload
can be sent during testing from the ROCC at the launch site or from the OCC in
Palestine, TX. Data from the payload is received at the OCC and can be verified
from the ROCC. There are different modes of communications.
In addition to the Iridium satellites in low Earth orbit, the balloon payload can
communicate with the network of geosynchronous TDRSS satellites. Nominal
TDRSS support for LDB offers 6-kbps return telemetry continuously (high-rate and
low-rate science interfaces) using an omni antenna. The Support Instrument Package
3.4 Support Equipment 55
feedback that they are at the commanded position. The rotator holds the payload
at that position until commanded otherwise.
The rotator is designed to provide a 5 arc-minute pointing capability, and it has
demonstrated a 1.4 arc-minute accuracy. The motor has a 28 volt battery source.
The system is designed to operate in a thermal range of –80°C to +50°C (–112°F
to +122°F). The system can also accommodate a slip ring which has 20 channels
for power, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) link, and Addressable Asynchronous
Receive Transmit (AART) communications.
SCAPS features a hollow titanium shaft, 3D printed solar sensor mounts, 3D
printed avionics package mounts, and a custom motor frame mount. The system
also uses 3D printed templates to standardize the assembly of both rotators, so that
non-uniform match drilling is not a problem.
Consolidated Instrument Package
CSBF has developed a command and data acquisition system for routine use in the
balloon program. User interface and balloon control is accomplished using several
mature electronic systems which retrieve science data as well as provide the essential control functions for safe and successful ballooning.
The Consolidated Instrument Package (CIP) is the command and data acquisition system utilized on conventional balloon flights. It is a self-contained electronics package that is readily configured to fit the individual needs of science groups.
It fulfills the functional requirements of transmitting CSBF housekeeping as well
as user-generated analog or digital data, and it receives science and balloon control
commands sent from the control tower or tracking aircraft but not from satellites.
CIP is made up of a card rack containing printed circuit boards that provide the
means for receiving and decoding commands, subcarrier oscillators, pulse code
modulation (PCM) encoder, dual GPS receivers, pressure transducers, ATC Air
Traffic Control (ATC) transponder and RF transmitters. It employs a 16-bit data
word and can accommodate 77 discrete commands.
Support Instrument Package
As part of the equipment provided to science teams this enables their payload to
communicate with both the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS)
and Iridium system of low Earth orbit satellites to provide a command path and
return telemetry if the payload is out of line of sight. Commands to the payload
can be sent during testing from the ROCC at the launch site or from the OCC in
Palestine, TX. Data from the payload is received at the OCC and can be verified
from the ROCC. There are different modes of communications.
In addition to the Iridium satellites in low Earth orbit, the balloon payload can
communicate with the network of geosynchronous TDRSS satellites. Nominal
TDRSS support for LDB offers 6-kbps return telemetry continuously (high-rate and
low-rate science interfaces) using an omni antenna. The Support Instrument Package
3.4 Support Equipment 55