SANTA BARBARA, Calif., 3 Feb. 2009 Ecliptic Enterprises Corp. selected the Integrity real-time operating system (RTOS) from Green Hills Software, Inc., for Ecliptic's next-generation RocketCam digital video system (DVS).
Integrity manages all DVS command and telemetry functions as well as real-time video processing tasks on the RocketCam DVS, which is being used in NASA's Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle capsule Pad Abort Test program.
The program employs high-speed digital video cameras to capture onboard video of Orion's parachute deployments during each test flight. NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards, Calif., manages the test program.
"Integrity is a proven product with a strong customer base, giving us the confidence to implement our desired capabilities on a low-risk path. We also selected Integrity for its proven robustness, scalability, and functionality," says Rex Ridenoure, chief executive officer for Ecliptic. "The successful completion of our DVS product upgrade using Integrity has generated expanded business opportunities for our DVS technology."
"Green Hills Software's Platform for Avionics is the industry choice for the most demanding safety and security critical electronics applications," says David Kleidermacher, chief technology officer for Green Hills Software.
RocketCam DVS consists of imaging sensors connected to a Digital Video Controller (DVC). The DVC provides power and power control, supports stored and event-driven DVS sequencing, controls all sensors, ingests and manipulates their output data streams and affiliated engineering data, and compresses, stores, and outputs these data to the host platform or directly to a transmitter for downlinking to end users. RocketCam is used to: observe staging and propulsion events; observe spacecraft separation, deployments, and operations events; characterize operational environments; support anomaly investigations and failure reviews; and support other engineering and project outreach objectives.
The Platform for Avionics includes the Integrity and Integrity -178B RTOSes, a complete toolset for safety-critical software development, support for the aviation industry standard ARINC-653 application software interfaces, and the documentation and services required for U.S. FAA DO-178B Level A safety certification. The Integrity RTOS's partitioning features allow developers to deploy multiple applications on a single processor, at potentially multiple safety certification levels. This capability enables developers to reduce the number of on-board computers needed to support multiple software systems, Green Hills Software officials say.
Ecliptic's core competencies include space systems engineering, aerospace avionics, instrument systems, and aerospace test equipment.
