• Software Engineering
• Robotics support  
• Project management
• Database development
• Small Satellites

Space Systems

• Space operations support
• Configuration management
• Database development
• Software and simulation engineering
• Logistics and sustaining engineering

Canadian Space Agency, 
St-Hubert, Quebec

International Space Station (ISS)

As a partner in the International Space Station Program, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) is contributing the Mobile Servicing System (MSS). The MSS Space Segment has three sectors: the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS); the MRS Base System (MBS); and the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM).  This entire system is designed to build and maintain the International Space Station (ISS), and is being developed at the CSA’s Space Segment in Saint Hubert, Quebec. 

The Space Segment is supported by a Ground Segment, which includes facilities providing for MSS space operations, training, logistics, ground processing, and sustaining engineering. Ground Segment elements are located at the MSS Operations Complex (MOC) and the MSS Sustaining Engineering Facility (MSEF), both at the CSA.  The MOC is the focal point for Canadian ground-based MSS operations support.

Current MOC facilities are divided into operational, training, and simulation facilities: 

• The Space Operations Support Center (SOSC) is the operational support interface with the NASA ControlCenter Complex (CCC) at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas.  The SOSC provides the facilities and tools to support on-orbit planning activities, monitors activity execution, and analyses the resulting data.

• The Canadian MSS Training Facility (CMTF) is the facility in which the training of crew, instructors, and ground support personnel is prepared and conducted.

• The MSS Simulation Facility is composed of the MSS Operations and Training Simulator (MOTS), the Virtual Operations Training Environment (VOTE), the SPDM Task Verification Facility (STVF), and the Logistics Support System (LSS) Workstation. To briefly describe these:

  • The MOTS is the MSS simulator that characterizes MSS performance. It supports Canadian Operations and Training activities, providing high-fidelity functional and dynamic models of the MSS Space Segment on-orbit configurations.

  • The STVF is based on the MOTS, but has been augmented with a robotic arm that performs like the simulated SPDM. The STVF also feeds sensed contact force data back to the MOTS in real-time, ensuring greater fidelity when verifying SPDM tasks to be performed in orbit, and involving payloads’ insertion/extraction.

  •  VOTE is the facility where MOTS simulations are experienced in an immersive and interactive stereoscopic viewing environment. This provides the opportunity for virtual enhancements (such as tools, or arbitrary views) for training in spatial orientation and 3D cognitive visualization.

• Finally, the LSS Workstation provides analytical tools for Logistics Support Analysis (LSA), inventory management, trend analysis, and related logistics functions.

MOTS

The Mobile Servicing System Operations & Training Simulation (MOTS) facility is made up of real time simulation environments of varying degrees of fidelity, along with an aggregate of software tools intended for the support of space operations, and  training of crews and ground controllers in the context of the Canadian made robotics systems installed on the International Space Station. The simulation generates a high-fidelity environment which replicates robotics systems kinematics, dynamics, control, and data response. Operator commands and actions are input from control consoles which emulate the flight article. These inputs are then processed by the control software simulation models to generate the appropriate dynamic responses. MOTS provides the infrastructure to support malfunction simulation, data logging and archiving, and the update of simulation models and station models with flight data obtained through on-orbit test and characterization, or on-orbit configuration changes. In 2000 Barada won a major contract to support engineering activities within this simulation complex. This includes defining operational procedures, supporting development and validation activities, and providing their technical expertise to assist managerial staff into enhancing the facilities.  

Barada employee operating the MOTS simulator

Barada employee simulating a space mission

Barada employee working on the STVF robot controller

Several Barada employees are currently working on the STVF project, providing their expertise on robotics, modeling, real-time software, graphical user interface development and integration. The ground based robot and its controller have been an ideal platform for the Space Technologies department researcher to experiment in the field of robot control, in particular with the symbolic representation of robot and automatic real-time code generation for hardware-in-the-loop robot controller (the Symofros project), supported by Barada employees.

Barada employee setting-up a virtual reality session with the VOTE

Today's virtual reality technology does not provide optimal human vision cues with the current display technology, which make it difficult to perform some distance judgment tasks in VOTE. The later problem, together with the fact that virtual reality provides the possibility to create graphical representation of abstract concepts (such as frame of reference), lead to the development of  visualization tools used as training aid within the virtual environment. These visualization tools are called Virtual Tools in the VOTE context.

VOTE also provides, the animation of a virtual mannequin to reproduce the movements of the arms and head for an immersed person. This uses an inverse kinematics library to animate the limbs according to tracking data.

Barada employee at the SOSC consoles

Barada’s Logistics and Sustaining Engineering group

Activities of this group include:

• Development of integrated logistics capabilities for the Space Station program. This includes re-supply and maintenance planning, inventory management, and all other activities necessary for sustaining the MSS’ functional performance.

• Procurement of spares, flight and ground-support equipment, and management of L&SE facilities.

• Development, maintenance, and operation of the Engineering Support Center (ESC) at the Canadian Space Agency, and providing L&SE support to real-time operations.

• Performing MSS Engineering Analysis, including post-mission analysis and trend analysis at the ESC and at the MSS Sustaining Engineering Facility at the Prime Contractor (MSEF).

• Management of MSS software and hardware maintenance; support of software integration, testing, and verification capabilities; management of hardware and software modifications and enhancements, etc.

• Providing support to Canadian Space Agency Training, Operations, Payload, and Ground Segment groups, as required.

• Providing regular L&SE support to NASA, for miscellaneous tasks such as coordinating the transfer of data, hardware, and software.

• Management of Prime Contractor L&SE activities and deliverables.

• Management of L&SE data and associated databases.

LIS (logistics information system)

The Logistics Information System is a dynamic web site used to track the inventory of Canadian space-borne robotics systems. HTML pages are generated in real-time as data gets modified in the database.

Barada was awarded contracts to maintain and perform database management on this system. Further development of this system is still in progress.

SOCRATE (System to Organize, Conceptualize, Record and Analyze Training Environment)

SOCRATE is a client/server database application based on Oracle/Power-builder, developed to support and integrate all phases of the training development process based on military standards (Canadian Forces Individual Training System, A-P9-000-000/PT-000 CFITS). It has been originally developed to assist the training of astronauts for upcoming missions on the International Space Station.

The supported training development process covers the task analysis, the training design, the training conduct, and the courses evaluation and validation for performance based training.

One of SOCRATE's unique features is its capability to link performance standards used to develop each lesson of a course to the original task analysis on which the course is based. This way, a much better control can be achieved to make sure that no unnecessary training is carried on and that the required training objectives and standards are all covered.

Another most interesting feature is the scheduling tool that allows to easily customize courses according to a trainee's experience and that provides comprehensive schedules for the trainees and the staff involved in the training conduct.

SOCRATE provides complete Configuration Management for the courseware material (e.g. Word Processing documents, PowerPoint slides, lesson plan documents, etc.).

SOCRATE also provides a variety of important reports and forms, integrates all electronic courseware material, provides administration tools and comes with a complete context sensitive on-line help system.

Barada was awarded the contract to develop this application for the Canadian Space Agency. Barada’s personnel are still actively refining this product, maintaining it and performing database management on this system.  Moreover, Barada began the process of acquiring from the Canadian Space Agency the legal rights for this product, targeting its commercialization in the near future. Research and development activities are underway at Barada (refer to the “Document Management Plug-in” project) to offer state-of-the-art functionality within SOCRATE.

ORIS

ORIS is a system to track Contracts, Contacts, Organizations, Corporate Overviews, Committee Management, Regional Distributions, etc. ORIS was designed for the Canadian Space Agency and is currently in production.

Barada is still maintaining and performing database management on this system occasionally, for the Canadian Space Agency.

EDRADMIN Configuration Management System

EDRADMIN is a Configuration Management system that was developed by Barada for the hardware and software Configuration Management department of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) at the Canadian Space Agency.

EDRADMIN tracks all the documentation (issues, authors, etc..) related to the development and operations of SSRMS (e.g. engineering drawings, specifications, procedures, reports, etc.). The system also tracks the Engineering Change Process (ECN's, ECP's, Deviations, Waivers, etc.) and contains a database of the entire SSRMS part breakdown structure, starting from the entire assembly.

Recently, this system was augmented to include Integrated Flight Loads (e.g. a system to track all software components and data files to be loaded on the Space Station).

Barada personnel are still maintaining and performing database management on this system.

Corporate Action Tracking System (CATS)

CATS is a database application made by Barada for the Canadian Space Agency to tracks the action items generated as a result of events (such as design reviews) as well as any other events.

The system categorizes the action items into four categories (level 1 to level 4). Level 1 action items are at the highest level (director's level). Level 2, and 3 are usually assigned to the managers reporting to the directors. Level 4 action items are at the lowest level. Usually many actions are issued at this level in order to resolve an action at a higher level. Action items are assigned priorities and given a status. Each user can view and act on all action items assigned to him/her, as well as action items assigned to persons working for him/her in the organization.

A dynamic Web interface to the system was developed, which allows the user to access and act on his/her action items using the Web browser.

Space Technologies

Barada employees working on the engineering model of QuickSat

Barada employee testing a new hardware prototype of the flight computer

SCISAT

SCISAT-1, a new Canadian satellite, will be launched to study the upper atmosphere.

The principal goal of the mission is to measure and understand the chemical and dynamical processes that control the distribution of ozone in the stratosphere. The research focus will be on the decline of stratospheric ozone at northern mid-latitudes and in the Arctic. Both the SCISAT-1 satellite and the science instrument on board will be designed and built by Canadian industry

Funding for the Small Satellite Program, under the Canadian Space Agency's Space Science Program, was provided by the Long Term Space Plan II, announced in June 1994.

Barada personnel have recently been contracted to support the Canadian Space Agency into developing parts of the ground segment systems to be used to operate SCISAT-1.

SECURE SATELLITE OPERATIONS

Barada is currently providing resources to the software & ground segment group of the Canadian Space Agency / Space Technologies department, to work on research initiatives for secure satellite operations.

Barada employee presenting the MIM

SYMOFROS

SYMOFROS is a research initiative of the robotics group of the Canadian Space Agency/Space Technologies department. It takes the form of a software tool that allows modeling of mechanisms in tree topology with closed kinematics loops and non-holonomic constraints. The product name definition is Symbolic Modeling of Flexible Robots and Simulation. The software is divided in 5 modules:

1.   The Model Editor is the graphical user interface that provides the functionality to create a specific robot topology. The interface provides menus for the edition of the model characteristics and for the definition of the model

2.   The Symbolic Computation module: Instead of using numerical algorithms, SYMOFROS computes offline the dynamics and the kinematics equations related to the defined model. Once this task is performed, SYMOFROS generates the equivalent C source code. This module of the software has been developed using the MAPLE 5.1 release V software.

3.   The Non Real-Time (NRT) Shell Environment, provided to query a model about its dynamics and kinematics behaviors. This shell has been developed using the Matlab 5.3 R11 software. SYMOFROS provides the functionality to compile a model and to generate a non real-time executable file.

4.   The Non Real-Time (NRT) Simulation Environment: In addition to provide functionality in the Matlab shell, SYMOFROS provides Graphical Simulation blocksets that will be used in the Matlab Simulink environment. This feature allows the engineers to create quite complex controllers using simple blocks and without requiring the use of programming languages.

5.   The Real-Time (RT) Simulation, which generates C source code of the Graphical Simulation blocksets. With the Matlab toolbox, Real-Time Workshop, it is possible to create an independent executable on the operating systems mentioned above.

Through various contract with the Canadian Space Agency, Barada has been contributing (and still is) to the Symofros project. Moreover, Barada undertook research and development activities related to Symofros.

PROJECT and DOCUMENTS TRACKING SYSTEM (PTS)

PTS is a system to track (supervise) R & D Contracts from initial proposal (Project Definition Document, PDD) to its completion and then for commercialization supervision. The system electronically assists in the creation of requisitions, and creates the appropriate attachments at the same time. It allows users to link and view attachments to the requisitions electronically using any word processor available to them. The attachments can be edited and modified by the user at any time (before the user submits it for approval).

The PTS facilitates the management of projects and contracts by tracking the evolution of projects from creation to completion. The system allows a Project Leader (S.A.) to create a project and submit it to his/her Manager for acceptance in real time. Managers can use PTS to accept or reject projects. Once projects are accepted, the Project Leader (S.A.) can prepare the requisition and submit it to his/her Financial Authority for approval. PTS maintains budget information for each Financial Authority, which can be used for validating requisitions.

Barada is still actively maintaining and performing database management on this system at the Canadian Space Agency. The Document Management Plug-in research and development project at Barada targets the enhancement of this project amongst others.