Precise, High-Dynamic Range, Miniature Testbed for Satellite Navigation

Researchers in Prof. Simone D'Amico's Space Rendezvous Laboratory have developed a high fidelity, high dynamic range testbed to stimulate a broad range of cameras and verify functionality and performance for the next generation of vision-based satellite navigation systems. In contrast to other equipment, the testbed applies a system of movable lenses and displays to enable short-range and far-range image simulation, dynamic transitions between navigation regimes, and treatment of varied camera fields of view. Whereas other test equipment with a dynamic space scene may have relatively coarse accuracy by comparison, the testbed demonstrates geometric and radiometric calibration down to arcsecond accuracy. This enables static and dynamic real-time testing prior to flight, accounting for rapidly changing scenarios and geometric distortion. This portable, cost-effective, easy-to-calibrate system can be used on the ground to rapidly validate the performance of hardware, software and algorithms, with excellent application to the verification and validation of star tracker hardware and algorithms.

Stage of Research
The inventors have built an upgraded, expanded prototype testbed and have demonstrated operating modes to simulate static and dynamic scenes consisting of stellar and non-stellar objects. The fully calibrated system is capable of positioning point sources of light to within single arcseconds of angular accuracy, spanning eight orders of radiometric magnitude. The testbed has been used to verify and calibrate commercial spacecraft camera hardware. It has also been applied for high-fidelity testing of novel optical navigation algorithms at both close-range and far-range, using cameras in the loop.

Published results include: