The ACU Interface PCB – The nervous system of the ACU-M1, provides the capability to control many types of antenna systems

The Front Panel of the ACU-M1

Antenna Control Unit - M1“The State of the Art in Antenna Control”

Our Antenna Control Unit - M1 provides to the operator complete control over the antenna/pedestal, the feed,

and supporting equipment. It fits into a 19” rack and comes with a 15” color touch screen display. Integrated handwheels and slew switches on the front panel allow for easy control of antenna movement. The M1 provides a USB interface on the front panel for additional peripherals like a keyboard, pen drive, joystick, or printer. The M1 can interface with up to eight telemetry receivers that can be grouped into different combinations for auto receiver selection.

Regardless of the application, the ACU-M1 can be setup to work from a remote site or right at the pedestal. Please see our Remote Control brochure for more information.

The ACU-M1 handles both satellite and range applications. For satellite applications, the M1 propagates the satellite trajectory from satellite elements in several formats or program tracks from a predicted trajectory. A schedule for tracking several satellites can be programmed from the front panel or remotely. The ACU can automatically download satellite elements from the Internet or from a networked storage area. NORAD Two Line Elements may also be entered manually via the Manual TLE Entry Menu. For range applications the M1 can either autotrack or be slaved to any slave source to follow the target. Many slave formats are currently supported over Ethernet, Serial, and GPIB connections. The M1 has the ability to take Azimuth and Elevation pairs, target locations in Earth Centered coordinates, or Azimuth, Elevation, and Range data from a Radar.

We have two sizes of ACU-M1 chassis. We have our standard chassis displayed on this brochure and we have our long chassis. The long chassis makes it possible for us to integrate embedded receivers inside the ACU. Control of the receivers is available on the front panel of the ACU.

In real time, the M1 adapts to one of three servo loops (Type I, Type I with Feed Forward, and Type II) based on the mode of operation in each axis independently. We designed this to achieve the best possible system response while maximizing the life of the system.

The ACU-M1 works well at sea. Inputs for Inertial Navigation System (INS) data allow the ACU-M1 to work out the ship’s orientation relative to True World coordinates.

The TCS ACU-M1 produces reports for many of its tests in the Portable Document Format (PDF). These color reports are generated at the completion of our Velocity/Acceleration Tests, our Motion Tests, and our Error Gradient Tests. They are time stamped to provide a history of your system’s performance.

We designed the ACU-M1 to be modular in form, fit, and function, allowing for ease of upgrades, maintenance, and learning. We customize the ACU-M1 to fit all your telemetry needs.

Sky View Camera Control Fault View Feed Control Remote Stow World View Schedule View

Slew Switches

Meatball(Error Display)

All Axis Information Collocated

Handwheel

Analog and Digital Represntation of Angles

Online Help

* Optional

Operational ModesStandby

Manual Handwheel, Slew, Joystick, Immediate & Program DesignateSearch Raster & Spiral Patterns

Slave Ethernet*, RS-232/RS485*/RS422*, Synchro*, GPIB*, Synchronous Serial*, Custom*, GPS* Parallax correction and programmable offset control

Acquire/ Autotrack

Multi-path Clipping, Threshold, Rate Memory, Program MemoryAutotrack, Program Track, Step Track, Sun Track, Track From File, Overhead PassTime Offset For Program TrackPosition Offset

Remote TCS ICD*, Custom*TCP/IP*, UDP/IP*, GPIB*, RS-232*

Servo Control Power

AmplifiersCompatible with PWM, Linear, and SCR

Motor Drive Single, Dual (Torque Bias To Eliminate Backlash)Position

FeedbackSingle Speed, Dual Speed, Synchro, Resolver, Encoder (Incremental & Absolute), Potentiometer. (Resolution up to 22 bits)

Servo Loop Type I, Type I with Feed Forward, and Type II

Close Loop Timing

Velocity loop – 11 μsPosition Loop – 10 ms.

I/O Interfaces Electrical Up to 8 Receivers AGC & AM

USB PortJoystick PortTest Ports

Network SNMP*, SNTP*, HTTP*, FTP*Time Reference IRIG-A*, IRIG-B*, IRIG-G*, GPS*, NASA-36*, SNTP*

Custom* If an interface doesn’t appear in this list, we can customize the ACU to interface with your device(s)

Setup Diagnostics

Targets Add or Delete Buttons for the Targets Menu. Add Satellites and Stars. Configure Automatic Download of Element Sets.

Handwheel/Joystick

Customize Sensitivity for Each Axis

Search Fine Tune Search ParametersAcquire Adjust Thresholds, MPC Angle, and Rate Memory Timeouts

Autotrack Adjust Phasing and Scale Factors for Each Receiver/Band Combination

Pedestal Calibrate System with Known Target or Sun. Adjust Soft Limits.Station

ElementsInput Station Elements or Grab From GPS

Receiver Calibration

Make the Receiver Displays Match the Levels on Your Receivers. Compensate for Noise Floor for Each Receiver

G/T

Test Ports

G/T Calculator. Automatic G/T (with Optional Power Meter)Grab Flux Values from Internet. Monitor Feed Performance.

Select Signals On The BNC Test Ports At Rear of ACUVelocity Test Monitor Pedestal Performance. Generates Report.

Travel Test Drive System to Its Limits, Measure Total TravelMotion Tests Measures Large Step, Small Step, Ka, and Kv Response

System Backup & Restore

Save System Settings For Backup and Restore

Error Gradien Measures Demod Response

Antenna Patterns

Allows Operator to Take Antenna Patterns with Spectrum Analyzer

Signal Strengths

Area View

USB for Expansion

PedestalCommunication Status

DVD/CDRW

Universal Power Supply(Takes from 90V to 240V)

Fiber Optic Connections to Pedestal

2 Network Connection 10/100/1000 BASE-T

AM & AGC Interfaces

Test Ports and Sync

RemovableSolid State

Disk

Floppy Drive

Optional IRIGTime Code Reader

Optional ExtraNetwork Ports

Base Model

©2011 Telemetry & Communications Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Product specifications subject to change without notice.September 2011

Telemetry & Communications Systems, Inc.10020 Remmet AvenueChatsworth, California 91311-3854www.tcs.la +1-818-718-6248

Processor 2.26 GHz INTEL® Core™ 2 Duo

Memory 1 GB RAM

Display 15” Color Touch Screen

Storage Solid State DiskDVD-ROM (RW Optional)1.44 M Floppy Drive

Operating System

Microsoft® Windows® 7/ Linux

Pedestal Control Interface

Fiber Optic,Multiconductor Cable,USB

Support Feed Types

Conical Scan, SCMP, E-scan, Custom*

ACU-M1 SpecificationsExternal

InterfacesEthernet (TCP/IP, UDP/IP)RS-232/422/485GPIB

Power From 90VAC to 240VACLess Than 200W(Standard Configuration)

Temperature Operational 0°C to +40°C

Humidity 20-90% Non-Condensing (indoor)10-95% Non-Condensing (outdoor)

Dimensions 10.25” x19” x 14” (7U)

Weight Less Than 30 lbs (13.6 kg)