User-Friendly Design of an Integrative Cubesat Testing Station

• Michael Gnatyuk
• Michael Pak
• Kyle Bewley
• Alex Munoz

A team of scientists at Fermilab would like to obtain more data concerning the existence of dark matter in space. This can be accomplished by using a CubeSat, which is a miniaturized satellite. In order to effectively use a CubeSat, certain properties must be measured. The moment of inertia and center of gravity are the properties of interest necessary for engineers to pilot the satellite by controlling attitude and thrust. Two separate instruments measure the center of gravity and moment of inertia. The proposed device integrates and interfaces the data between the two testing instruments and the CubeSat. This will create an ergonomic design for the user. A MATLAB application was developed to receive data from both instruments and organize the data into comprehensible results. The output includes all the necessary data for the user and creates images that make the data easy to interpret. An enclosure was also constructed to house the testing instruments. The enclosure sits on top of a vibration isolating laser table to not interfere with the testing procedure. By researching current methods and designs, collaborating with the testing device teams, and minimizing cost while maximizing integration efficiency, the team developed a device that fulfills the necessary requirements to provide a user-friendly integrating interface of the two testing devices.