Under funding from the Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) Voucher for Innovation and Productivity II (VIP II) program, Carleton University’s Spacecraft Robotics and Control Laboratory renews its partnership with Neptec Design Group Ltd. on a two-year industrial R&D project related to the development, implementation and experimental validation of a thermal imager-based computer vision software enabling autonomous relative pose estimation with uncooperative spacecraft. This project builds on a previous successful collaboration between Neptec and Professor Ulrich’s research team, which was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Engage program.
About Neptec Design Group Ltd.
Neptec Design Group Ltd. specializes in the development, implementation and operation of intelligent 3D-machine vision systems that were initially developed for the space industry. A prime contractor for NASA since 1995, Neptec has delivered space-certified systems for three NASA programs and 40-plus space shuttle missions. Neptec has received multiple supplier awards from NASA, most recently in February 2011, when it became the first non-U.S. company to win the George M. Low Award, NASA’s premier honour for quality and performance.
About OCE Programs
All OCE programs are discretionary and non-entitlement and involve a process that is highly competitive and attracts many applications. Eligible projects are reviewed on their merit and also assessed against program eligibility, OCE objectives and assessment criteria. Given the limited funding that is available, only projects that attain the highest marks and demonstrate the greatest likelihood of meeting program objectives are awarded funding.