The VLTI Auxiliary Telescope System: a big challenge for a small company

Carlo Flebus; Pierre Gloesener; Bertrand Koehler

doi:10.1117/12.551266

16 September 2004 The VLTI Auxiliary Telescope System: a big challenge for a small company

Carlo Flebus, Pierre Gloesener, Bertrand Koehler

Proceedings Volume 5497, Modeling and Systems Engineering for Astronomy; (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.551266
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2004, Glasgow, United Kingdom

Abstract

AMOS S.A. is a small company specialised in the fields of opto-mechanical, thermal and vacuum technology. To develop, manufacture and test the ESO VLTI Auxiliary Telescope System (ATS) was considered internally as a big challenge. ATS is a large-sized project and difficult to manage for a small company (since ATS, AMOS has hired about 25 people and now employs about 60 people). ATS is also technically a very complex system because of the following reasons: • Unusual telescope (mobile telescope) • Very tight system performances (e.g. Image quality, OPD, Pointing) • Severe design constraints because of existing site interfaces (e.g. volume, mass) and environment (including wind and earthquake) • Multidisciplinary engineering system (mechanical, optical, electrical, thermal, pneumatic, hydraulic) This paper describes how this project has been managed in practice by AMOS and also the important role of the system engineering. The last paragraph will be dedicated to the main lessons learned.

Citation Download Citation

Carlo Flebus, Pierre Gloesener, and Bertrand Koehler "The VLTI Auxiliary Telescope System: a big challenge for a small company", Proc. SPIE 5497, Modeling and Systems Engineering for Astronomy, (16 September 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.551266

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