RISA - Payload for the DLR PLUTO Mission

RISA (Reliability Investigation of Low Power FPGAs for Space Applications) is a payload platform which is jointly developed by the Smart Sensors Group of the TUHH and the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW). The payload we will deliver is in PC104 format and will be integrated into the PLUTO platform of DLR Bremen. PLUTO (Payload under test orbiter) is a technology disassembly platform in the form of a 6U CubeSat, which is being developed by the Institute of Space Systems at DLR in Bremen. General information about the PLUTO mission can be found on the project website.

Project goal

FPGAs have always been known as processing elements for use in space environments. A new class of FPGAs, the Low Power (LP) FPGAs, are highly interesting due to their lower power consumption, especially for smaller satellites with low energy budgets. A general objective of RISA is to test COTS LP FPGAs for their suitability for use in satellites. One of the FPGAs used will be the GateMate from Cologne Chip. The special feature of this FPGA is that, in addition to its suitability as an LP FPGA, it was also developed with chip independence in mind. With RISA, this is the first in orbit application.

Another component being evaluated by the TUHH is a fault-tolerant test core for efficient functional testing of IP cores on an LP FPGA. In addition to the general test against radiation damage, the use of undervolting is also used as an application. The latter is the first application under space conditions. The aim is to test to what extent FPGAs can be operated reliably under the challenging space conditions far below their specified voltage and to what extent this influences the general reliability. The GateMat itself serves as the controller of the entire experiment and will be evaluated for its properties during operation in space. The targeted LEO orbit will be flown by PLUTO for a mission duration of 2 years. During this time, the RISA payload will provide important findings for the reliable use of LP FPGAs in space environments.

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External Partners

We also work closely together with Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW). General coordinator of the PLUTO Project is Institute of Space Systems at DLR in Bremen