May 20, 2008

NPS Inc. is pleased to sign a collaboration agreement with the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), McGill University and Ryerson University for a joint collaborative project for design and development of active fluid based attitude control subsystem for satellites. The three-year project will be funded jointly by NPS, CSA and NSERC to explore a novel attitude control method using fluid rings in a pyramid configuration. The objectives of this undertaking include:

• Development of mathematical models governing attitude motion of a rigid body with three fluid rings in a pyramid configuration
• Development of attitude control laws using the model
• Study of the effect of disturbances (fluid leakage, gravity gradient torque)
• Exploration of feasibility of using the system for attitude determination and thermal control
• Validation of analytical results by conducting experiments
• Construction of prototype if results are encouraging