Communications subsystem hardware and software development for the ESTCube-2 nanosatellite

One of the most crucial components of satellites is their communications subsystem. Without a functioning radio link, it would be challenging to receive telemetry and payload data from the satellite and send telecommands to it from the ground. ESTCube-2 is a 3U CubeSat from the Estonian Student Satellite Foundation that is expectedto launch in 2022. The mission of ESTCube-2 is to test various payloads inLEO. The primary payload being the plasma brake, similar to the Electric Solar Wind Sail (E-Sail) experiment on ESTCube-1. Due to the critical nature of the satellite communications system, it is essential to start with thorough testing early to reach high reliability by the launch. The goals for this master thesis are to test ESTCube-2 communications subsystem hardware and software, and to create an engineering model, to resolve any issues discovered

Driver package for using Leap Motion controller on the robotics development platform ROS

Järjest laienev robotite kasutusvaldkond nõuab inimeste ja robotite vahel üha tihedamat koostööd, mida kirjeldatakse koondterminiga inimese ja roboti suhtlus (ingl „Human-Robot Interaction“). Seetõttu on vajalik arendada töökindlaid meetodeid inimeste tuvastamiseks ning luua intuitiivseid kasutajaliideseid robotite kergeks juhtimiseks. Käesoleva bakalaureusetöö eesmärgiks on luua draiver, mis võimaldaks kasutada käte jälgimise seadet Leap Motion kontroller (LM-kontroller) robootika arendusplatvormil ROS (Robot Operating System). Kuigi arendusplatvormile ROS eksisteerib juba LM-kontrollerile draiver, siis selle funktsionaalsus ja dokumentatsioon on puudulikud ning alates 2014. aastast pole seda arendatud, sest koodihoidlal puudub aktiivne haldaja. Bakalaureusetöö raames valminud LM-kontrolleri draiveripaketi eesmärgiks on laiendada olemasoleva paketi võimalusi, tõsta seadme kasutajamugavust nii kasutajatele kui ka arendajatele ning koostada terviklik dokumentatsioon (paigaldusjuhendid ja lähtekoodi kommentaarid)

Interplanetary Student Nanospacecraft: Development of the LEO Demonstrator ESTCube-2

Nanosatellites have established their importance in low-Earth orbit (LEO), and it is common for student teams to build them for educational and technology demonstration purposes. The next challenge is the technology maturity for deep-space missions. The LEO serves as a relevant environment for maturing the spacecraft design. Here we present the ESTCube-2 mission, which will be launched onboard VEGA-C VV23. The satellite was developed as a technology demonstrator for the future deep-space mission by the Estonian Student Satellite Program. The ultimate vision of the program is to use the electric solar wind sail (E-sail) technology in an interplanetary environment to traverse the solar system using lightweight propulsion means. Additional experiments were added to demonstrate all necessary technologies to use the E-sail payload onboard ESTCube-3, the next nanospacecraft targeting the lunar orbit. The E-sail demonstration requires a high-angular velocity spin-up to deploy a tether, resulting in a need for a custom satellite bus. In addition, the satellite includes deep-space prototypes: deployable structures; compact avionics stack electronics (including side panels); star tracker; reaction wheels; and cold–gas propulsion. During the development, two additional payloads were added to the design of ESTCube-2, one for Earth observation of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index and the other for corrosion testing in the space of thin-film materials. The ESTCube-2 satellite has been finished and tested in time for delivery to the launcher. Eventually, the project proved highly complex, making the team lower its ambitions and optimize the development of electronics, software, and mechanical structure. The ESTCube-2 team dealt with budgetary constraints, student management problems during a pandemic, and issues in the documentation approach. Beyond management techniques, the project required leadership that kept the team aware of the big picture and willing to finish a complex satellite platform. The paper discusses the ESTCube-2 design and its development, highlights the team’s main technical, management, and leadership issues, and presents suggestions for nanosatellite and nanospacecraft developers