mobile dependable wireless systems in space applications

Mobile Dependable Wireless Systems in Space Applications

Haowei Bai, Ph.D.Communications DPT Lead

Human Space Enterprise Team

Randy Black Integrated Autonomous Systems IPT Lead

Human Space Enterprise Team

Space ApplicationsHoneywell Aerospace19019 N. 59th AvenueGlendale, AZ 85308

CANEUS/NASA Fly-By-Wireless for Aerospace Vehicles Workshop March 28 2007, Grapevine, Texas, USA

2 Honeywell International, Inc.

Agenda

• Introduction- Network centric approach- Wireless networks

• Our big picture – wireless networking architecture for aerospace

• Reduce our ideas to practice – Honeywell wireless virtual backplane (mobile dependable wireless distributed system) for integrated autonomous and robotics systems

• Summary


Why Network is Important?Po

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System Data Bus (IEEE 1394b, MIL-STD-1553, AFDX, etc.)

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Network Centric

5th Generation Network-Centric Architecture today

• Benefits of network centric approachfor avionics Local Area Network:


Autonomous Assembly in Space

C3I for Constellation Systems

Surface Mobile Networks for human and robots

Autonomous Rendezvous & Docking

Autonomous Assembly in Space

C3I for Constellation Systems

Surface Mobile Networks for human and robots

Autonomous Rendezvous & Docking

• Moving toward network centric approach for space Wide Area Network:

Why Network is Important? (Cont’d)

“…24 hours per day, 7 days per week (24/7) coverage at the mission site through the duration of the mission is a requirement. Furthermore, it was decided that 24/7 global availability should be provided…” -- NASA’s Exploration Systems Architecture Study, Chapter 4 Lunar Architecture


The Future Role of Networking

• It is a super glue!

Fault Tolerant Computing

Distributed Computing

Real-time Embedded Systems

Real-Time Operating System

and Software Architecture

Highly R

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Sensing and Data Fusion

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Computer Networks (wired, wireless, mobile)

Reconfigurable Computing


• Wired networks need more systems engineering (i.e., architect it for specific application against program costs, schedule and staffing).

• Wireless networks need more research and development.


Future Wireless Networks• Looking into future, wireless networks offer many unique benefits:

- Wiring costs and weight (i.e., take off or launch costs).- Mobility that wired networks do not offer.- Easy for upgrade and reconfigurations.- Only choice for hard-to-reach places using wires, e.g., rotating engine shaft,

communication on the lunar surface, etc.• On the other hand, it has many “unknowns”:

- It has never been certified.- Power supply (battery, power scavenging, power line?)- Interference to and from existing onboard avionics.- Break the law of Byzantine fault tolerance where independent channels are needed –

wireless links typically share the same RF spectrum.- Signal propagation model is unique to specific environment, thus hard to mathematically

prove.

Wired networkWireless network

In-space assembly Sensing

Backup for existing wired network

Space C3I

Sensor

FADEC

Lunar data grid


Measure of Effectiveness for Wireless in Aerospace

• How do you design a network for aerospace applications that satisfies:

- Information integrity- Subsystem and system reliability (e.g., tolerate two independent

simultaneous faults).- System availability- Costs (development and recurring)- Performance (high throughput, deterministic, fair) in relevant

environments- Certification (e.g., can you mathematically prove?)- Maturity- Scalability- Security- Mobility- …


Research Topics in Wireless Networking• For aerospace applications that are willing to benefit

from wireless networking technologies: - How does a network autonomously find neighbor devices (a computing host, a

spacecraft), join and leave a network?- How to tolerate long delay?- How to multiplex different traffic with different QoS in an ad hoc multi-hop

configuration?- How to gain full control of the network performance (determinism for safety)?- How to intelligently and dynamically configure the link? For instance, spectrum

(to mitigate the impacts of space radiations)?- What is the best architecture to integrate all space elements, hierarchical,

traditional client-server, or flat P2P? (satellites, CEV, LSAM, EDS, ISS, habitats on the lunar surface, rovers and robots on the lunar surface, astronauts on the lunar surface, pre-configured wireless sensors on the lunar surface, etc.)

- What is the best architecture that is reconfigurable (spectrum, QoSrequirements, protocols, etc.) for each specific mission?

- Most importantly, how to integrate solutions to all above issues into a network that still satisfies requirements such as those (integrity, reliability, costs, etc.) in the previous slide?


Agenda




• Summary


Wireless Networking Architecture – The Big Picture


Example 1: Wireless VHM Sensors


Example 2: Wireless Backup Avionics Data Network


Agenda




• Summary


A Little Background – Honeywell Integrated Modular Avionics (IMA)

• Virtual Backplane™ is the key to ultimate flexibility:- A system where all information is available to every aspect of the system

Includes I/O or computationally derived data


A Little Background (Cont’d) -- System of Systems

• Integrated Systems architecture supports reconfiguration- Individual systems are coupled through fusion of their individual Virtual

Backplane™ elements- Several free-flying elements fuse into a new combined configuration

An updated system is achieved through predetermined, yet dynamic, re-configuration of individual element configuration tables

An updated system is achieved through predetermined, yet dynamic, re-configuration of individual element configuration tables


Honeywell Wireless Virtual Backplane™

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• With wireless Virtual Backplane™, multi-robot collaboration becomes a single avionics control system.

First successful implementation of IMA principles in Boeing 777

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Mobile, deterministic, fault tolerant, reliable wireless communication


Mobile Dependable Wireless for IMA Controlled Robotics

• Multiple small robotics platform collaboration as a single avionics system.

• Controlled by Honeywell 5th

generation IMA avionics architecture.

• Enabled by mobile dependable wireless technologies that can meet Honeywell Primus virtual backplane requirements.

Operational View

Architectural View

Operating System & Middleware

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•••Operating System & Middleware

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Virtual Robots

Base station

Robot 1

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Mobile, deterministic, fault tolerant, reliable wireless communication

Time and Space Partitioning


What Can We Eventually Do?

• Modular Integrated Control of Mobile Autonomous Robotics systems

Scenario 2: The whole integrated wireless IMA system hands-off from one coverage zone to another.

Scenario 1: An IMA controlled individual robot within an wireless virtual backplane does not have to maintain continuous connectivity with the master robot.

“…24 hours per day, 7 days per week (24/7) coverage at the mission site through the duration of the mission is a requirement. Furthermore, it was decided that 24/7 global availability should be provided…”

-- NASA’s Exploration Systems Architecture Study, Chapter 4 Lunar Architecture


Our Demo: Wireless Networks for IMA Controlled Robotics


Summary of Deterministic and Anti-jamming WirelessJoint Effort with Honeywell Labs, HTSL, and Honeywell Commercial Aircrafts

Currently at TRL 7


Honeywell Current Status on Wireless Virtual Backplane

Technology Nuggets Alignment with customer CTQs

TRL Goal and

ScheduleEnable new capability through distributed framework

TRL 7 (Sep 2006)

TRL6 (Dec 2006)

TRL 7 (Dec 2007)

TRL 6 (Aug 2008)

Enable new capability through distributed framework

Fault tolerance Enable new capability through distributed framework

Dependable fault tolerant wireless to be developed in 2007.

Seamless (low latency, low loss rate) handover --enables mobility

Enable new capability through heterogeneous framework

Working with University of Oklahoma to develop individual node handoff and subnetworkseamless handoff.

Overall TRL Risk for Honeywell

Wireless virtual backplane (dependable mobile wireless distributed system)

Deterministic

Anti-jamming/interference

IEEE 802.15.4 (Zigbee) based deterministic wireless demonstrated in 2006.

Proof-of-concept adaptive channel hopping anti-jamming wireless demonstrated in 2006.


Agenda




• Summary


Summary

• Wireless technologies offer many unique benefits for aerospace applications. However, commercial wireless technologies do not satisfy requirements of aerospace applications.

• With success and experience in many aerospace programs, we advocate to tackle this problem from a network-centric architecture point of view (as opposed to traditional embedded system’s), and have proposed a configurable architecture that is compatible with commercial wireless networking principles.

• With the synergy across Honeywell (Honeywell Labs, Honeywell Commercial Aircrafts, Honeywell Technology Solutions), we at Honeywell Space Applications have prototyped and demonstrated a proof-of-concept wireless virtual backplane for collaboration of multipleautonomous and robotics systems.

• Our goal is to have a multi-robot collaboration platform interconnected by our wireless virtual backplane, which is controlled by Honeywell IMA architecture as if it were in a traditional wired avionics platform.

Thanks for your attention!

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Haowei Bai: [email protected], 602-822-3168Randy Black: [email protected], 602-822-3594

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

mobile dependable wireless systems in space applications

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