Dassault Systèmes, a French 3D design software company, will collaborate with Airbus Safran Launchers to develop the Ariane 6 launcher by providing a digital mockup.
Airbus engineers will use Dassault’s software to develop the launcher, which is scheduled for its first test flight in 2020. Specifically, Dassault will provide a collaborative digital mockup that will help reduce errors, minimize changes, and consolidate the development and industrial ramp-up phases. Applications are being used for design in context processes, internal and transnational co-design reviews, and program reviews leveraging virtual reality that enables the accurate definition of all complex manufacturing operations, the company announced in a statement.
“For Ariane 6, Airbus Safran Launchers continues to build on the accomplishment and value created with Dassault Systèmes’ solutions that contributed to the design of Ariane 5,” said Alain Charmeau, Airbus Safran’s chief executive officer, in a statement.
“These solutions, based on a high-fidelity digital mockup shared by our partners, remain at the heart of our industrial model to develop the launcher across Europe.”
Ariane 6, which is being developed for the European Space Agency, will reportedly come in two variants. The Ariane 62, which will have two P120 solid boosters and will weigh 1.1 million pounds at liftoff, is intended for scientific missions and will be capable of launching up to 11,000 pounds into geostationary transfer orbit. The Ariane 64 will have four P120 booster and a liftoff weight of about 1.8 million pounds. This variant is intended for commercial dual-satellite launches of up to 23,100 pounds to GTO.
“We are proud to bring our partnership for innovation and performance with Airbus Safran Launchers to an upper level,” said Bernard Charlès, chief executive officer and vice chairman of Dassault in a statement.
“In times of consumerization of space, our collaboration aims to design and develop a new experience-focused model for space launch, and know from the earliest stages that Ariane 6 can be delivered on budget, to specification, and on time. Dassault Systèmes’ unmatched aerospace and defense industry solution experiences enable Airbus Safran Launchers to explore the possible, collaborate with clients and through all disciplines and stakeholders within the ecosystem, and configure the right concept. Together, we can harness the power of design and digital heritage to transform the industry.”
Filed Under: Aerospace + defense, Virtual reality