Category Archives: Devices

Cyber security firm BITSCore successfully tested software algorithms on a sub-orbital rocket launch

BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia, 17-Nov-2021 — /EPR AEROSPACE NEWS/ — Australian cyber security company BITSCore has successfully tested two sets of software algorithms on a sub-orbital rocket launched in Queensland, Australia, just a week after testing them on the International Space Station.

The software will help providers to upgrade onboard satellite cyber security as they join the 5G network, and allow satellite customers to request “ride-share” tasking from satellite operators.

BITSCore CEO Dr David Hyland-Wood said the advent of 5G had brought home to the satellite industry the need for new cybersecurity measures to help guarantee their security.

“5G has been a wake-up call for satellite operators everywhere, as they come to understand the need for making sure their satellites, some of which may have been in space for several years, need cyber security assurance,” Dr Hyland-Wood said.

“In recent weeks we did some preliminary tests on the International Space station (ISS), and now we have tested in the harsh environment of a rocket launch,” he said.

“We put the software on a board as physical payload and tested our communications, using internet protocols to exercise our authorisation system.”

This latest SONAR mission (‘Snakes on a Rocket’, named after its Python programming language) test confirms the technology has reached Technology Readiness Level 6 (TRL 6) – system prototype demonstration in a relevant environment.

Also tested in the Black Sky Aerospace rocket was an algorithm which will allow satellite customers to alert operators of task requirements, and operators to pick up those tasks in a ride-share arrangement.

The tasking might include earth observation, communications, navigation, surveillance or monitoring the weather.

The launch took place on one of Black Sky’s outback Queensland space launch sites. The flight reached speeds almost twice the speed of sound and altitude of almost 30,000 feet in about 10 seconds.

Dr Hyland-Wood said that following the successful ISS and rocket launch tests, the next step was to test them in a military exercise environment, followed by continued testing on the ISS.

BITSCore Pty Ltd (bits-core.com) is an Australian cybersecurity company providing unique and powerful distributed computing solutions utilising patented and patent-pending technologies. These include satellite command and control, provably secure data storage, and advanced command authorisation services. BITSCore is headquartered in Queensland and serves governments and corporations in countries allied with Australia.

SOURCE: EuropaWire

DigiSky and Asman Technology partnership to address the aerial surveying market

TORINO, 1-Mar-2021 — /EPR AEROSPACE NEWS/ — Asman Technology, a leading provider of avionic and communication technologies and services, and DigiSky Srl, a leader in aerial ground monitoring technologies, today announced their will to join their forces to bring to market SmartBay, the DigiSky’s proprietary product line that provides a broad range of solutions dedicated to the transformation of General Aviation CS/FAR-23 aircrafts into special mission ones.

Beginning immediately, Asman Technology will be entitled to resell SmartBay products and aircrafts in addition to its traditional Arla-600 model, both in France and internationally. “DigiSky’s SmartBay product line fully complements our traditional manned ULM offer with competitive solutions in the CS-23 certified domain”, said Eric Matysiak, CEO of Asman Technology.

Enabling the most efficient aerial monitoring solutions Asman Technology has a significant expertise in developing, marketing and operating aerial surveillance and photogrammetry solution by airplanes, helicopters, drones and aerostats. In addition, Asman Technology is a leading provider of proprietary solutions, https://aerodatalink.com, dedicated to allowing mission systems to broadcast and be operated from the ground in real time.

“We truly believe that Asman Technology expertise and market footprint in enabling aerial missions with advanced ground-board communication is key to accelerate DigiSky’s roadmap towards new markets”, said Paolo Pari, CEO of DigiSky.

Asman Technology and DigiSky’s joint efforts to market efficient and affordable technologies will provide unique key benefits to all those clients, whether already operating or willing to operate, in the aerial ground monitoring segment, such as:

– The ability to collect and process large amounts of aerial images in an affordable manner by using highly configurable aerial platforms that match multiple missions’ typologies.
– The ability to reconfigure missions and sensors suite in a rapid, easy and certified way
– The ability to expand monitoring capabilities without the need for expensive investment by adapting existing aircrafts to their unique aerial monitoring needs

SOURCE: EuropaWire

Web app that monitors olive groves by relying on European satellite tech won the Farming by Satellite Prize 2020

LONDON, 17-Dec-2020 — /EPR AEROSPACE NEWS/ — The winners of the Farming by Satellite Prize 2020 were announced at the virtual Farming by Satellite Prize 2020 Awards Ceremony on Monday 30th November. The Prize promotes the use of Galileo, the European Global Navigation Satellite Systems, the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), and Copernicus, the European Earth observation programme in European and African agriculture. The overall winner of €5,000 was team Graniot from Spain with their web application that uses European satellite technologies to help agronomists and farmers monitor their olive groves to reduce water waste and poor fertilisation practices.

Team Genuine received second prize for their web-based solution that identifies crop stress and the optimal tractor path for irrigation and fertilisation using Copernicus, EGNOS and Galileo, components of the European Space Programme. Third prize went to team AI4OceanFarming, who use satellite data to identify ocean farming threats such as harmful algal blooms (HABs), ocean acidification (OA), and invasive species. The Special Africa Prize went to GeoM&E for their solution that looks to monitor coffee diseases using European satellite technologies. The winners beat stiff competition from 40 other young people. Judges selected the best teams to take their ideas forward to the ‘Deep Dive’ phase, and then selected eight grand finalists to pitch their solutions during the final ‘live’ judging round.

The Farming by Satellite Prize is an initiative of the European GNSS Agency (GSA) and the European Environment Agency (EEA). It is supported by CLAAS, a leading manufacturer of agricultural engineering equipment. It aims to increase the usage of Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus for European agriculture. The Prize also aims to grow awareness on the benefits the EU Space Programme provides toward fostering innovative and sustainable farming solutions. The objective of the Special Africa Prize is to encourage young Africans to develop satellite-based solutions that cater to the specific needs and resources of communities and lands in Africa.

Reviewing the winning entries this year, GSA judge Joaquín Reyes González said: “The innovation and wide variety of agriculture applications submitted by young innovators this year has been wonderful to see. It confirms the value of encouraging the next generation of farmers to explore the use of satellite technologies in agriculture to enable sustainable farming practices.”

Commenting on the environmental aspect of entries, Hans Dufourmont, judge for the European Environment Agency added: “The agricultural sector needs to continue developing sustainable food production activities and lessen their impact on the environment and climate. It’s great to see Galileo and Copernicus convincing young farmers to become tech savvy entrepreneurs and develop competitive yet sustainable agriculture.”

The last words go to the winners Pablo Romero Díaz and Manuel Castro Ruiz of Graniot, who stated: “We’re honoured to be chosen as winners for the Farming by Satellite Prize 2020. We will be putting the EUR 5,000 cash prize to good use developing our satellite crop monitoring web application further. The whole journey has been a great experience that would not have been possible without the support of UGREmprendedora and the Andalucia Agrotech DIH. We’ve learnt so much. We have been inspired by the feedback from the judges and have enjoyed seeing the entries from all the grand finalists during the awards ceremony.”

Contestants were tasked with creating a new sustainable and environmentally friendly agriculture solution using Galileo, EGNOS and/or Copernicus. Solutions had to demonstrate their novel approach to the use of satellite services for farming, while ensuring accurate technical feasibility and a maximal impact on the farming industry.

On behalf of the judging panel, Marcel Fölsch from CLAAS said about the winning idea: “Graniot have consistently presented a high-quality solution throughout all stages of this year’s competition. It is great to see their focus on olive farming in southern Europe, allowing them to narrow in on specific customer needs and present a compelling remote sensing solution to their users. We’re pleased to award the top prize to a team clearly driving the adoption of sustainable agriculture practises in Europe.”

Participation was open to young farmers, academics, and professionals between the ages of 18 and 32. They could take part as individuals or as a team of up to four. For the Special Africa Prize, at least one applicant was required to be a citizen of or resident in an African country.

Full details on the competition are available at www.farmingbysatellite.eu.

SOURCE: EuropaWire

A2 Technologies Have Entered Into A Patent License Agreement With The Boeing Company To Utilize The Patents In The Application Of A2’s Portable Exoscan FTIR Spectrometer

A2 Technologies today announced they have entered into a patent license with the Boeing Company allowing the use of Boeing patents in association with the development, manufacture and sale ofA2 Technologies’ FTIR Spectrometers. The license will permit A2 Technologiesto utilize the patents in the application of A2’s portable Exoscan FTIR spectrometer for non destructive testing of aerospace composite and metal materials. Examples of the applications include the use of the Exoscan for measuring the affect of excessive heat on the chemical structure and strength of composite material, and the ability to non-destructively analyze the effectiveness of certain surface treatments in composite and metal materials.

Exoscan is a high performance FTIR that puts a laboratory quality spectrometer, literally in the palm of one’s hand. With the addition of the Boeing patent licenses, A2 Technologies can now provide proven FTIR based analytical methods that will significantly increase the types of materials that can be analyzed in a variety of applications that are critical to aircraft manufacturing and maintenance.

Jon Frattaroli, CEO of A2 Technologies stated “we are excited to have entered into this licensing agreement with the Boeing Corporation. Boeing is clearly the leading US aircraft manufacturing company. They are also leaders in using FTIR spectroscopy in a wide range of aerospace applications, particularly related to composites and surface analysis. But it is the combination of A2’s Exoscan spectrometer and the Boeing patents that will finally enable methods traditionally carried out in laboratories to be deployed into aerospace manufacturing facilities and maintenance hangers.”

Headquartered in Danbury, Connecticut, A2 Technologies is taking FT-IR spectroscopy out of the lab and into the field. A2 Technologies manufacture and develops portable FT-IR spectrometers designed for the analysis requirements of the aerospace, petrochemical, environmental, metals and mining and other industries where there is a need for at-site, out-of-laboratory analysis.

Via EPR Network
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Qspeed Semiconductor is introducing its Q-Series family of low Qrr, high softness factor, boost converter rectifier diodes

Qspeed Semiconductor, a designer and manufacturer of innovative, energy-saving power semiconductor devices, today introduced its Q-Series rectifier family. The new family of devices was designed specifically for use in power factor correction (PFC) circuits that deliver from 200 to 1000 W of power. Replacing anultrafast diode with a Q-Series device typically realizes efficiency improvements of 0.5 to 1.5% in the boost converter stage, which are similar to those obtained by using exotic Silicon Carbide diodes. Developed using Qspeed’s proprietary technology, the Q-Series family of devices has the lowest reverse-recovery-charge (QRR) and the best softness factor of any high-speed silicon rectifiers currently available on the market.

“Power supply designers no longer have to work around inferior diodes or use expensive Silicon Carbide devices,” said Michael T. Robinson, CEO of Qspeed Semiconductor. “Our Q-Series rectifiers make it easy to improve the efficiency of PFC boost converters and lower MOSFET operating temperatures while minimizing EMI generation, all without the use of snubbers and clamps.”

The Q-Series product family consists of three devices, which are rated to deliver continuous forward current values of 3, 5 and 8 A respectively. The 3 A device (LQA03TC600) would typically be used in boost converter stages that deliver from 200 to 400 W of continuous output power. The 5 A device (LQA05TC600) would find its home in converters that deliver from 400 to 700 W, while the zone for the 8 A device (LQA08TC600) is from about 700 to 1000 W.

“Until now, engineers looking to improve the operating efficiency of their AC-DC power supplies had to resort to using costly, Silicon Carbide diodes,” said Richard Francis, Qspeed’s Chief Technology Officer. “With the lowest reverse recovery charge and the best turn-off softness factor of any commercially available silicon rectifier, the Q-Series parts are being adopted faster than any new power semiconductor I have ever seen.”

Pricing and Availability:
All three members of the Q-series family are currently available in high-volume production quantities. The 3 A LQA03TC600 sells for 78 cents each, in fifty-thousand-piece quantities. The 5 A LQA05TC600 is going for 88 cents each, in 50,000 piece lots. The 8 A LQA08TC600 is selling for only 1.08 U.S. dollars each, in 50 k piece orders.

About Qspeed Semiconductor:
Qspeed Semiconductor designs, manufactures and sells innovative, highly-efficient, energy-saving, power semiconductor devices. Presently, the company is focused on the active components currently used in offline power conversion equipment. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, the company has manufacturing, testing, sales and logistics facilities located in Japan, Taiwan and Manila.

Via EPR Network
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