Design of the DSSL Testbench Hardware Architecture for Rapid Development and Execution of Hardware-in-the-Loop Control

Abstract

This thesis discusses the development of the MATLAB-based Distributed Space Systems Lab (DSSL) Hardware Architecture (or DHA), a software stack and design methodology to allow for rapid hardware and software development for controlling vehicles in MATLAB. The layers of the architecture are discussed in levels of increasing abstraction. The interaction between a MATLAB vehicle object and other objects is also considered, including interaction with controllers designed in Simulink. Several examples of the entire development cycle of a vehicle are provided (hardware, software, mathematical modeling), including a ground-based, two-wheel differential drive robot; and a two-propeller, vectorable-thrust blimp. The possibility of using the DHA for multi-agent systems is also discussed. A developer's guide is also provided.