A Reusable Software Architecture for Small Satellite AOCS Systems

This paper concerns the software architecture called Sophy, which is an abbreviation for Simulation, Observation, and Planning in HYbrid systems. We present a framework that allows execution of hybrid dynamical systems in an on-line distributed computing environment, which includes interaction with both hardware and on-board software. Some of the key issues addressed by the framework are automatic translation of mathematical specifications of hybrid systems into executable software entities, management of execution of coupled models in a parallel distributed environment, as well as interaction with external components, hardware and/or software, through generic interfaces. Sophy is primarily intended as a tool for development of model based reusable software for the control and autonomous functions of satellites and/or satellite clusters