DigiTwinAIT

Kurzfassung

Satellite manufacturing is a largely human-centred process that is divided into many phases, from preliminary design, through assembly, integration, and testing (AIT), launch campaign, operations and maintenance in orbit, to end-of-life. These phases follow a structures sequence and are assessed through dedicated reviews. In this work we concentrate on the process of assembly, integration, and testing (AIT). The tasks carried out during this stage are time-consuming and require precise documentation. Detailed plans and process documents must be created for each individual step, as these form the basis for subsequent workflow stages. In addition, manual work on the satellite, typically carried out in a clean room, must be carefully recorded and documented. Getting ready to work in the cleanroom is a time-consuming task due to strict safety and hygiene requirements, and should not be repeated more often than necessary. We present an application that aim to support the AIT process with model-based engineering through digital twins and augmented reality (AR). It is the first application that relies on a digital twin backend providing on-demand information and showing process information. Individual steps of the process are supported by AR visualizations. Additionally, it simplifies the creation of the activity planning and the subsequent documentation. In order to develop an application that meets the requirements and needs of the users, this project adopts a highly user-centered approach. To this end, interviews are conducted with domain experts from the AIT sector. Experts are asked about their current working environment and requirements for a future AR application in order to identify current problems and key issues. In combination with literature research, the results of the interviews are used on the design the application. A digital twin with workflows and status information serves as a data backend. The core aspect of the presented work, however, is the interactive visual guidance through the assembly process, supporting collaboration between multiple users. A web interface enables process definition and coordination between immersive and desktop-based workplaces, with the shared backend providing synchronized data to all views.