Product category:
Design and Development Software
News Release from: Wind River Systems | Subject: Wind River VxWorks
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 30 April 2008
Software helps replace submarine
periscopes
The optronic mast will use the Wind River VxWorks real-time operating system (RTOS) running on Thales quad PowerPC AltiVec COTS boards and AdaCore GNAT Pro to power the stabilisation system.
The Royal Navy's new Astute-class submarines will be using Thales UK's nonhull penetrating, optronic mast The state of the art electro-optic system will allow greater flexibility in boat design and provide improved surface visibility without giving away the position of the submarine
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 15 Nov 2005 at 8.00am (UK)
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The optronic mast will be powered by Wind River VxWorks mission-critical real-time operating system (RTOS), it was released today.
The Astute submarines will patrol the world's oceans with minimum risk of being detected by surface ships and other submarines.
It will deploy a number of technologies to reduce its sonar signature; however, submarines are most vulnerable to detection when the submarine commander uses a periscope to assess the situation on the surface.
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The Thales state of the art optronic mast minimises this risk by deploying a nonhull penetrating design, which enables the sensor head unit (SHU) to be extended from the submarine fin and rapidly perform a 360 degree scan of the above the surface, enabling the commander to analyse the image data afterwards, minimising risk of detection.
The optronic mast will use the Wind River VxWorks real-time operating system (RTOS) running on Thales quad PowerPC AltiVec COTS boards and AdaCore GNAT Pro to power the stabilisation system, video and thermal camera control, communication with the in-hull systems and control all the mechanisms and motors in the SHU.
The SHU is a pressure proof, electro-optical assembly that contains high-performance cameras, optics, environmental sensors and stabilisation mechanisms.
It is designed to function in temperatures ranging from -15 to +60C and withstand a nearby explosion.
Inside the submarine hull, the Mast Control Unit (MCU) co-ordinates overall system activity, controlling a number of other units and communicating with the submarine's tactical, data and combat systems.
The MCU uses two processors, both also running Wind River VxWorks.
It controls the mast raising equipment - raising and lowering the SHU out of the submarine fin.
The MCU also controls the azimuth drive module which rotates the SHU and forms part of the stabilisation system, requiring deterministic, high-performance servo control to compensate for the submarine's movement in the water and provide a clear image.
David Cookman, Systems Engineer, Thales Optronics, explains the project team's decision to choose Wind River: "Obviously a system like the Optronics Mast must be robust and highly reliable at all levels".
"Without it, the submarine is blind".
"VxWorks was chosen because it provides a high-performance, reliable environment".
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