Controller Area Network-Based Telemetry and Command System for Small Space Experiments

摘要

Controller area networks (CANs) have been used since the mid-198Os to connect microcontrollers and allow them to exchange data in an error resistant manner. Until recently, their use has been limited to industrial and automotive applications. The Polymer Battery Experiment (PBEX) is a small spaceflight system developed at APL that will use a CAN to interface its telemetry and command system to the spacecraft computer. This type of network is attractive for space applications because of its built in error detection and because it is a two wire network, which helps to reduce spacecraft weight. This article describes the PBEX CAN and discusses the implementation issues that were encountered during the design of the experiment.