The design and implementation of the UPMSAT-2 Attitude Control System

The paper describes in detail the design and implementation of the attitude control system of a small satellite, focusing on the hardware and software aspects. A new control algorithm has been used in order to deal with particular requirements of the system, which are related to its communication, power generation, and thermal control needs. The system is implemented on an embedded on-board computer, and the software has been developed with a model-driven approach using state-of-the-art software tools. Simulation tools have been used for software testing and validation in an integrated validation facility