Design, Integration, and Test of a GPS Receiver on an Inertially Pointed Satellite: A Case Study

Skip Cubbedge and Terry Higbee

Abstract:	The DARPASAT program is part of a larger initiative sponsored by Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA, formerly DARPA) to demonstrate a low-cost, quick-reaction, high performance satellite and launch vehicle design, construction, and test capability. Early in the program ARPA decided to integrate an AST-V GPS receiver, built by Rockwell Autonetics Electronic Systems Division under the auspices of the Air Force’s Phillips Laboratory, onto the DARPASAT satellite built by Ball Aerospace, for on-orbit tests and operation. The satellite was integrated onto the Taurus launch vehicle, built by Orbital Sciences Corp., for the launch vehicle’s first flight. This paper provides a case study of the design, integration, test and on-orbit checkout of the GPS subsystem on-board DARPASAT. Design trades including antenna placement on the inertially spinning satellite, link analysis and preamp requirements will be discussed. Spaceborne receiver initialization will be described, along with the data interface and mission operations requirements necessary to support timely acquisition of GPS satellites and collection of navigation data. Testing the subsystem in a manner consistent with a low-cost program was successfully performed without the use of expensive GPS signal generation equipment at the spacecraft level. Ball acted as the prime integrator of the GPS receiver payload onto the satellite, working closely with ARPA, Phillips Lab, and Rockwell to obtain the required interface information and to suggest changes to the receiver to support the unusual (for GPS) attitude of the spacecraft GPS antennas in its low-Earth orbit (LEO). The integration was successful, on-orbit data has been obtained and upon preliminary inspection looks good.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 7th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1994) September 20 - 23, 1994 Salt Palace Convention Center Salt Lake City, UT
Pages:	1701 - 1710
Cite this article:	Cubbedge, Skip, Higbee, Terry, "Design, Integration, and Test of a GPS Receiver on an Inertially Pointed Satellite: A Case Study," Proceedings of the 7th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1994), Salt Lake City, UT, September 1994, pp. 1701-1710.
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