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A Short-Range Free-Space Optical Communication System for Space-Assembled Microsatellites

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Applications in Electronics Pervading Industry, Environment and Society (ApplePies 2022)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering ((LNEE,volume 1036))

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Abstract

A free-space optical transmission system for applications that require a proper data communication channel between docked microsatellite modules is presented. The structure and the design of the optical communication interfaces are described. The system acts as a bridge between the CAN (Controlled Area Network) busses on the microsatellites, allowing communication between circuits in different separated modules. This avoids a physical connection between adjacent modules and electromagnetic disturbances that radio-frequency communication systems can generate. The system uses low-cost Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) components that can reduce significantly the operative costs. A prototype has been built in a format compatible with CubeSat satellites and successfully characterized and tested.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Italian MIUR Project PON PM3 ARS01_01181.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Information, Infrastructure and Sustainable Energy Engineering, University “Mediterranea” of Reggio Calabria, 89124, Reggio Calabria, Italy

    Demetrio Iero, R. Carotenuto & M. Merenda

  2. Center for Digital Safety and Security, Austrian Institute of Technology Gmbh, Vienna, Austria

    M. Merenda

  3. Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies, University of Napoli Federico II, 80125, Napoli, Italy

    F. G. Della Corte

Authors
  1. Demetrio Iero
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  2. R. Carotenuto
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  3. M. Merenda
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  4. F. G. Della Corte
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Demetrio Iero .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. DITEN, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy

    Riccardo Berta

  2. DITEN, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy

    Alessandro De Gloria

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Iero, D., Carotenuto, R., Merenda, M., Della Corte, F.G. (2023). A Short-Range Free-Space Optical Communication System for Space-Assembled Microsatellites. In: Berta, R., De Gloria, A. (eds) Applications in Electronics Pervading Industry, Environment and Society. ApplePies 2022. Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering, vol 1036. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-30333-3_23

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-30333-3_23

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-30332-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-30333-3

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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