Thanks to this new agreement, SPACEBEL is in charge of several software developments concerning a new ESA mission for concept testing in orbit built and operated by QinetiQ Space (Kruibeke - Belgium).

Funded by the European Union and implemented by the European Space Agency (ESA), the In-Orbit Demonstration & Validation (IOD-IOV) programme aims to strengthen Europe's global competitiveness, independence and technological innovation capacity in the Space sector while shaping solutions for the future. It offers universities, research organisations, SMEs and larger industrial companies the opportunity to test and improve new Space technologies in a time-reducing, cost-effective and sustainable way.

Capitalising upon the hardware and software Altius technology “Made in Belgium”, the IOD/IOV spacecraft will carry about a dozen small demonstration payloads and be compatible with different types of launchers.

On the one hand, SPACEBEL is in charge of the on-board software, which is quite similar to the Altius on-board software also developed by SPACEBEL. Its role: manage the satellite platform and implement the spacecraft command and control. Moreover, our IOD-IOV on-board software will act as a bidirectional relay transmitter for telecommands and telemetry data between the experimental on-board instruments and the ground.

On the other hand, SPACEBEL delivers the IOD-IOV control centre based upon the Altius Flight Operation System (FOS), which will be used for assembly, integration and test (AIT) activities as well as for satellite operation purposes. The SPACEBEL software will be deployed on the dedicated hardware installation and configured for the IOD-IOV mission

The project perfectly illustrates our ability and flexibility to reuse, configure and adapt our software engineering realisations for innovative challenges taking into account our customers’ needs and requirements.

Disclaimer: This document was produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union or the European Space Agency.