Get more information on Neptec's TriDAR!
Neptec Design Group’s TriDAR navigation vision system will be making its first test flight into space on STS-128. During the mission’s rendezvous, dock, undock and fly around operations TriDAR will automatically acquire and track the International Space Station (ISS) from the Shuttle, providing real-time guidance information to the crew.
TriDAR incorporates two 3D laser sensors, a thermal imager and software to perform six-degrees of freedom relative pose calculation and real-time tracking using only the geometrical features of the ISS. On STS-128 TriDAR will be tested for its ability to provide the necessary cues for autonomous rendezvous and docking without making use of targets such as retro-reflectors – this makes the system the first of its kind to fly in space.
Simply put, the system has the potential to enable automatic rendezvous and docking in space without needing to install markers on the target spacecraft. This also makes possible the servicing of existing spacecrafts on which no such markers have been installed. Other possible applications include using TriDAR for multifunction sensor robotic operations such as assisting with lander guidance, rover navigation, vehicle inspection, and exploration science. Such flexible capability in a single sensor will be critical in future exploration missions where size, weight, and power limits are small.
The vision system has been developed by Neptec Design Group with the support of NASA and the Canadian Space Agency. TriDAR is a hybrid scanner combining features of Neptec’s Orbiter Boom Sensor System Laser Camera (LCS) with the company’s long-range Time of Flight or LIDAR system into a single system. The combination of the LCS with the LIDAR allows TriDAR to operate at both short and long range without sacrificing performance. The sensor can also perform high resolution inspection scans as well as provide range and bearing guidance information.
NASA currently uses the LCS to provide high resolution 3D images of the Space Shuttle heat shield during the inspection performed after each launch. Laser triangulation, a key feature in the LCS, is typically used for high-resolution virtualization of objects for a variety of purposes including video games, movies, reverse engineering, inspection, archiving of historic artifacts. LIDARs are most often used for airborne or ground-based imaging such as geological surveys, forestry, urban planning, and automatic target recognition.
About Neptec
Specializing in advanced space, defense and industrial systems and applications, Neptec maintains a reputation of quality and reliability in the design, manufacturing, installation and support of its sensor systems with the Space Shuttle, International Space Station, and other major space programs. With new solutions for aerospace, defense and industry, Neptec, a NASA prime contractor, continues to be a pioneer in the innovative use of mission critical systems and applications. www.neptec.com
