Application of industrial CAN bus technology for LEO-satellites

The applicability of the CAN bus technology for cost reduction potentials i n the area of onboard automation of LEG-satellites is investigated. Due to its source from automotive applications the CAN bus technology is a very pr omising candidate in terms of functionality, performance, environmental rob ustness and cost. It furthermore supports efficiently functional redundancy due to its multi-master capabilities. The paper analyses the specific feat ures of the CAN bus compared with other industrial field busses and discuss es the functional performances for a combined telecommunication and earth o bservation reference mission. A simulation tool is presented which allows t o analyse and optimise the bus arbitration design, (C) 2000 Elsevier Scienc e Ltd. All rights reserved.