ENGINEERING PIPELINE

From Mission Statement to PDR Package

Vecteur automates the Phase 0 → A engineering pipeline today, with Phase B1/B2 on the roadmap. Describe your mission needs in plain language — the AI agent produces a complete system definition in minutes, not months.

You Write
Mission needs in plain language
AI Agent Runs
4-layer engineering pipeline
You Get
Complete Phase A study report

ECSS Phase Coverage

The European Cooperation for Space Standardization (ECSS) defines the lifecycle phases for space missions. Vecteur automates the computational aspects of these phases — compressing months of concurrent engineering into minutes.

Phase 0
Mission Analysis
MDR
Operational
Phase A
Feasibility
PRR
Operational
Phase B1
Preliminary Definition
SRR
Preliminary
Phase B2
Detailed Definition
PDR
Q3/Q4 2026
Phase C/D
Build & Test
—
Operational — full automation in current MVP
Preliminary — partial automation, requirements trades & iteration
Roadmap — component selection, E2E simulation, PDR package

The 4-Layer Pipeline

Each layer takes the previous layer's output as input, flowing from mission statement down to PDR-level deliverables. The pipeline compresses what typically takes months of concurrent engineering into a single automated run.

1

System Architecture Design

Phase 0 → A
Operational
Translates a plain-language mission statement into a complete system concept. Sizes the constellation, selects orbits through trade analysis, designs the ground segment, and picks a launcher — producing the full system architecture that a Phase A study would deliver.
Input
  • Mission archetype (EO optical, telecom D2C, IoT, ...)
  • Stakeholder needs (GSD, capacity, lifetime, coverage)
  • Constraints & anchors
Output
  • Constellation design (satellites, planes, phasing)
  • Orbit selection (altitude, inclination, type)
  • Ground network configuration
  • Launcher selection
  • Mass, power, cost envelopes
Derive Mission Needs
→
Size Constellation
→
Select Orbit
→
Design Ground Segment
→
Match Launcher
SystemArchitecture flows down
2

Spacecraft Sizing

Phase A → B1
Operational
Takes the system architecture and sizes the spacecraft across multiple candidate platforms. Each subsystem (power, propulsion, thermal, AOCS) is sized independently, then candidates are ranked by feasibility. Produces up to 5 competing designs with full mass/power/volume budgets.
Input
  • System architecture from Layer 1
  • System requirements
Output
  • Top 5 ranked spacecraft candidates
  • Platform selection (CubeSat, SmallSat, ...)
  • Subsystem sizing (power, propulsion, thermal, AOCS)
  • Mass / power / volume budgets
  • Feasibility scores
Enumerate Platforms
→
Size Subsystems
→
Compute Budgets
→
Rank Candidates
Best SpacecraftDesign flows down
3

Component Selection & BOM

Phase B1 → B2
Preliminary
Replaces parametric estimates with real hardware. For each subsystem, derives requirements from the sizing, queries a catalog of 937+ space-qualified products, then ranks and selects components by completeness, TRL, heritage, and cost. Validates interface compatibility across the full assembly.
Input
  • Best spacecraft design from Layer 2
  • Derived requirements per subsystem
Output
  • Real hardware from 937+ product catalog
  • Bill of Materials (prices, TRL, heritage)
  • Interface compatibility validation
  • LEGO assembly validation
Derive Requirements
→
Map to Filters
→
Catalog Search
→
Rank & Select
→
Validate
SpacecraftAssembly flows down
4

Validation & Compliance

Phase B2 → PDR
Preliminary
Runs a dual-fidelity end-to-end simulation (detailed + coarse), computes every performance budget, builds a compliance matrix against all requirements, categorizes margins, identifies risks, and packages everything into an exportable PDR-level deliverable.

E2E Simulation

Dual-fidelity: 1-7d @ 60s (power/thermal/data) + 30d @ 300s (contacts/coverage)

Performance Budgets

Mass, power (BOL+EOL), delta-V, link budget, thermal balance

Compliance Matrix

Actual vs. threshold, margin %, pass/fail per requirement

Margin Analysis

Critical (<0%), high (0-5%), medium (5-10%) categorization

Risk Register

Identified risks with mitigation strategies

PDR Package

Exportable documentation ready for review

StudyResult (complete)

PDR Package

Exportable documentation ready for engineering review

Produced by the pipeline
  • Mission needs & requirements flowdown
  • System architecture trades (constellation, orbit, ground)
  • Platform selection & subsystem sizing
  • Component selection from real catalog (937+ products)
  • E2E physics simulation (multi-fidelity, Rust propagator)
  • Performance budgets (mass, power, thermal, link, delta-V)
  • Compliance matrix with margin analysis
  • Risk register with mitigations
Not covered (requires human engineering)
  • Customer iteration on requirements (single-pass today)
  • Technology development planning (TRL is a filter, not a plan)
  • Verification plan & model philosophy
  • Procurement & supplier selection
  • Detailed design (Phase C and beyond)
The pipeline produces in minutes what typically takes months of concurrent engineering. It does not replace human judgment — it produces a first-cut PDR package that engineers can review, iterate on, and refine.

What You Get

From a single mission statement, the agent delivers a complete engineering package:

System Definition

Constellation architecture, orbit parameters, ground segment

Power Budget

BOL/EOL analysis, solar array sizing, battery capacity

Thermal Analysis

Hot/cold case temperatures, radiator sizing

Mass Budget

Subsystem breakdown with margins per ECSS standards

Link Budget

Uplink/downlink margins, data rate vs. elevation

E2E Simulation

Multi-day orbit propagation, contact windows, coverage

Bill of Materials

Real components with price, TRL, and heritage data

Launcher Recommendation

Best launcher match based on mass, orbit, cost

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