ZIN provides a broad range of mechanical engineering, design and analysis functions, including acceleration measurement/abatement, pressure vessel design, critical structures, structural dynamics and design analysis with finite element and difference tools such as NX NASTRAN, FEMAP, SEA, SINDA and others. System and man in the loop simulation models have been developed utilizing MatLAB, MSC ADAMS and other computational software. Kinematic and Dynamic analyses are also performed to evaluate and verify real-world behavior of designs without the need for physical prototypes. 

ZIN offers expertise in hardware and system structures designed for space flight, including ISS facilities, payloads, satellites, and launch vehicle elements.  ZIN has demonstrated past performance in design for shock and vibration isolation on ISS systems and launch vehicles. Separate static and dynamic Finite Element (FE) models capture and analyze specific flight conditions, and FE model results further assess and verify design aspects such as fracture control, fastener margins, and margins on primary structures including system life predictions and prognostics. FE model validation checks are made based on FEMCI. ZIN also performs static, dynamic, and shock load analyses for verification of structural integrity and margins, performs venting analyses, and performs thermal stability analyses.  We develop and validate dynamic models to verify system vibratory, fatigue and dynamic characteristics, and also work with nonlinear materials, performing buckling, composites, and fracture analyses and optimization sizing. 

Thermal analyses assess heat dissipation paths and define test conditions to verify hardware's thermal design and performance.  ZIN is highly experienced with active/passive thermal system design and modeling, using computational fluid dynamics and thermal analysis tools (ANYSYS, SINDA, TAS, FLUENT, MathCAD), high-vacuum to high pressure systems analysis, and cryogenics and high-temperature systems analysis. ZIN has conducted analyses encompassing propellant slosh, heat transfer, phase-change solidification, low gravity fluid management, and gas-liquid separation.

ZIN offers expertise in the area of composite structures design and analysis. We have over a decade of experience in providing safe, reliable designs that examine and verify a broad range of strength, stability, and frequency criteria, which are concept-dependent. ZIN employs a structural optimization software tool, HyperSizer, which assesses multiple geometries, panel concepts, and materials (both autoclave and out-of-autoclave) in an optimization process resulting in the lightest and most efficient final design. HyperSizer works in conjuction with finite-element software tools, such as NX Nastran, from which it obtains element forces for design optimization. ZIN has expertise in sizing a number of different structural cross-sections including honeycomb, foam core, hat-stiffened, stringer-stiffened, corrugated, and fluted. Our structural and mechanical designs are then performed using Pro/ENGINEER.

ZIN analyzes and designs low to high resolution imagers, telescopes, multispectral and hyperspectral systems. We have broad experience in the areas of imaging (intensified, high frame rate, color, ultraviolet, infrared), illumination (LED, laser based), and radiometric detection (CCD, thermopiles, photo-diodes, photo-multiplier tubes). ZIN has provided design, testing, verification and validation of optical components for spaceflight.

ZIN's electrical designs meet IPC class 3A and Space Addendum requirements. Our designs have been deployed on flight systems such as Shuttle, Earth orbiting satellites, ISS, NASA SMD missions, DoD missions, and military and commercial aircraft.  ZIN supports hardware development with EEE part controls, worst-case analysis, performance, radiation and derating analysis.

ZIN has experience in design, fabrication, and test of cables and harnessing including design, fabrication and testing to NASA-STD-8739.4. Our design expertise includes wire type selection, sizing and derating, connector selection, materials selection of jackets, insulators, conductors, and coating for space applications including atomic oxygen and embrittlement concerns. ZIN also utilizes EEE-INST-002 or MSFC-STD-3012.

ZIN provides engineering test services to integrate and verify flight and ground systems and science data applications.  Our QMS contains the environmental test requirements defined by NASA, AIAA, IEEE, FAA HF, MIL, RTCA, SAE and SME standards including thermal, vacuum, shock, vibration, strength, EMI, acoustics, atomic oxygen, and radiation.  We interface directly with test facilities to schedule, design and develop supporting test fixturing and support as-run testing.

Image Credit: NASA

Systems engineers provies requirements management, reliability analysis, trade studies, technical analyses and system simulations, risk management, and other mission-critical areas. ZIN places a high degree of emphasis on our Systems Engineering disciplines, as we understand that a thorough systems-level technical and management approach is a fundamental prerequisite for an end-product guaranteed to meet all functional, quality, operational, and cost requirements. System Engineers work closely with PMI certified project management and other technical areas (design, subsystem engineering, integration and test, product/quality assurance, etc.) to ensure a compliant, reliable and efficient overall system design.  Our hardware/software development is based on life cycle analysis and milestone metrics analysis.  ZIN offers expertise in all aspects of Systems Engineering, including model based system engineering (MBSE), requirements management (analysis, decomposition and allocation), systems analysis, architecture definition and design, interface control, configuration management, hardware validation and acceptance, and mission design and operations.

ZIN is an experienced supplier of mission-critical software and firmware. ZIN has AS9100-standard processes for Configuration Management, Software Assurance and all other activities needed to support the full project life cycle. We deliver products such as:

• Embedded real-time software/firmware for space vehicles, ISS flight experiments and on-orbit facilities

• Ground software for support of flight-unit checkout, ground test and mission control facilities

User displays & controls for ISS crew operations and ground stations

ZIN has expertise in the areas of RF and Microwave components and system designs.  Typical applications include:

• Wireless communications

• Computer engineering (bus systems, CPU, peripherals exceeding 600 MHz)

• Printed circuits, lamination, electronics assembly, hybrid and microwave integrated circuits, encapsulation, precision cleaning, metal treatment, wet and dry lubrication, potting, electromagnetic, flight assembly, and mechanical and electronic inspection.

• Integrated modeling and simulation

Image Credit: NASA

ZIN develops and builds systems for space guidance, navigation and control.  As an example, we provided the inertial navigation system for NASA Goddard's MMS mission, currently on-orbit, demonstrating precision 4-satellite formation flight, enabled by our GN&C technology. ZIN has developed orbital propagation and look angle prediction software, performed access, optical tracking, and link analyses, and supported ground tracking station development. We also develop system specifications and model error propagation to support spacecraft trajectory design. Further, we have developed control systems for Hardware-in-the-Loop ground simulators of rocket engine thrust vector control systems, as well as launch vehicle upper stage dynamics.

ZIN provides  support for propulsion system integration and testing. This includes support of the Boeing Delta III upper stage hot-fire testing, and support of RL-10 testing as part of the Air Force Atlas Reliability Enhancement Program. ZIN has conducted computational plume impingement, computational and analytical propellant slosh, thermodynamic cycle, multiphase flow and boiling and condensation heat transfer analyses. ZIN also has expertise in Electric Propulsion (EP) system design, flight hardware development/production and test.

ZIN has decades of data handling heritage in the aerospace and medical marketplaces. This includes over 13 terabytes of cloud-served data to the aerospace community for research and development. Our capabilities include facility design, administration, and custom-tailored cloud based applications.  Our Data Management and Analytics expertise includes initial collection, organization, archiving, dissemination and exploitation to generate value-added higher-level Data Products. 

ZIN built - and operates – a NASA Telescience Center (TSC), a fully functional command center that controls NASA ISS spaceflight payloads.  As an example, we collect and process ISS microgravity perturbation data from the on-board ZIN-provided Space Acceleration Measurement System, SAMS, and manage this data through a Principal Investigator Microgravity Services (PIMS) real-time, web-based service. We provide database administration, IT, and data security, and offer world-class capability in the areas of data handling, distributed networking, and real-time 24/7 operations.