NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
End-to-end product Development: Concept, Design, Analysis, Manufacturing, Assembly & Testing.
In collaboration with GSFC, Newton provided end-to-end product development of a new aircraft instrument structure and stabilization platform for the Snow Water Equivalent SAR and Radiometer (SWESARR) mission, including flight support services to install and configure the instrument and stabilization platform on the Twin Otter aircraft.
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) requested a reliable aircraft stabilization platform for the the SWESARR mission within a compact frame of technical and time requirements.
SWESARR is a state-of-the-art microwave snow measurement system. It provides scientists with data to estimate how much water is stored in the Earth’s terrestrial snow-covered regions and a test-bed for measurement techniques that can be extended to satellite observation.
Newton repackaged SWESARR in a new instrument structure and stabilization platform for flight on a Twin Otter aircraft. This included designing, fabricating, and testing both the platform for the instrument’s components and a new aircraft roll compensation mechanism.
The new platform maintains a tilt angle within 0.1 degrees under aircraft disturbances. It was delivered with a full structural analysis report that demonstrated the system’s capability to withstand worst-case operational aircraft and FAA requirement loads. The design includes a structure mechanism, control system, and mechanism control electronics proven to perform and meet aircraft instrument requirements. Through end-to-end product development, Newton:
• Designed, fabricated, and tested a tilt-compensation platform to stabilize an aircraft-mounted instrument within 0.1 degrees with respect to the inertial reference frame;
• Developed a structure which meets FAA crash loads and Twin Otter DHC-6-300 vibration requirements, as demonstrated by Newton’s structural analysis and proof tests;
• Designed and programed the control system (including sensors, motion controllers, and motor) to interface with the platform to compensate for aircraft roll disturbances;
• Provided a data collection system which delivered valuable instrument orientation data;
• Assisted on-site with flight-readiness activities to ensure success of the tilt-platform during on flight instrument operations.
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