LESSONS LEARNT FROM THE DEVELOPMENT OF OPTICAL EQUIPMENT FOR MANNED MISSIONS. GALILEO AVIONICA EXPERIENCE

摘要

Normally the safety requirements for a manned mission project are defined at high level in the program and are set at the highest level of generality. On the other side, while developing a small instrument or equipment, a more tailored approach would be needed, in order to address, since the beginning, to the important points.rnGalileo Avionica has a wide experience in the development of Electro-optical equipment, instruments and microgravity experiments both for manned and unmanned missions.rnThe design and development of electro-optical equipment/tools to be used by astronauts (both in IVA and EVA) on the Space Station, or in other manned missions, are normally characterised by strong requirements in the frame of Safety (normally strictly related to the function they perform) and Human Factors (with relation, in particular, to the simplicity of their installation/handling and maintenance during EVA), further to the need to be "user friendly" and performing.rnThis paper gives a short overview of Galileo Avionica experience on this type of projects, and some lessons learnt in the development of optical equipment for manned missions. In particular, the Camera and Lighting Unit (CLU) for the ERA program, where a singular situation of programmatic changes (like e.g. the change of launcher from manned to unmanned) did happen, will be exposed.