In space, mistakes are costly, often irreversibly so. When a satellite, probe, or spacecraft has been launched into orbit, the possibilities for intervening to correct any malfunctions are extremely limited. This explains the need for increasingly advanced software platforms, capable of supporting the design, simulation, validation, and optimisation of systems intended to operate in extreme conditions.
The ability to simulate the thermal behaviour of a satellite along a given orbit, to analyse electromagnetic interference in communication systems, or to predict the structural response of components subjected to mechanical stress opens up a world of opportunities and innovations for the aerospace industry.
“Simulations serve to verify how a structure can withstand certain stresses,” Daniele Ciriello, Sales Executive at Dassault Systèmes, a leading company in the sector, explains to Renewable Matter. “Analysing how heat propagates within a satellite, monitoring electromagnetic fields in the presence of one or more antennas, or studying the vibroacoustic response of a component are needs increasingly felt by the space industry.”
3DEXPERIENCE, collaborating in a coherent digital space
Through the virtual representation of objects, systems, and processes (known as virtual twins), engineers can assess complex scenarios, validate performance, and optimise solutions before physical prototypes are built, reducing development time, costs, and risks during the entire product lifecycle. It is easy to grasp how complex satellite systems are, with development requiring technologies, expertise, and suppliers throughout the entire value chain. During the various stages of design, testing, and optimisation, collaboration between stakeholders becomes, therefore, crucial. For this reason, Dassault Systèmes created the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, a digital space that integrates data, systems, processes, and people in a coherent environment. By working from a single data source, companies can maintain well-defined and interoperable levels of product development, such as programme management, product management, and test management.
The platform ensures a continuous digital flow, in which multiple elements can be monitored during the same simulation. In a technologically complex sector, where development times are long and requirements change easily, 3DEXPERIENCE can reduce errors, speed up verification, and make the whole process more efficient. Dassault Systèmes estimates a reduction in investment costs as well as significant improvements in product efficiency, which can also lead to lighter products.
Antenna design systems
CST Studio Suite stands out among Dassault Systèmes’ flagship solutions for electromagnetic design and simulation. This platform, part of the Simulia ecosystem, is dedicated to the development of satellite antennas, RF components, and complex electromagnetic systems. Thanks to its electromagnetic solvers (simulation software that calculates the behaviour of electric and magnetic fields) and its multiphysics capabilities, CST Studio Suite allows engineers to predict system behaviour even in the early design phases, reducing the need for physical prototypes, accelerating development, and mitigating technical risks.
Rounding out the ecosystem, Antenna Magus speeds up the antenna synthesis phase by providing a library of more than 350 validated models, selectable according to various technical requirements.
For Dassault Systèmes, digital security is also an essential prerequisite, which concerns not only the protection of IT infrastructure, but the entire digital ecosystem: from the protection of intellectual property to data governance, all the way to operational continuity and collaboration between partners. “Our platforms integrate advanced authentication, encryption, identity management, and granular access control mechanisms, helping ensure high standards of security, compliance, and resilience throughout the entire product lifecycle,” explains Ciriello.
The topic of the cloud also continues to draw particular attention from companies, who want to know where their data is stored, how it is protected, and what security and compliance guarantees the platform offers. Dassault Systèmes’ solutions are designed to support the highest security and resilience requirements, in compliance with national and international regulations, allowing organisations to choose the deployment architecture best suited to them, be it on-premise, private cloud, sovereign cloud, or public cloud.
Cover: photo by Dassault Systèmes