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NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is hereby soliciting information from potential sources for the manufacturing of Radio Frequency (RF) Transmitters for the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). NASA/MSFC... NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is hereby soliciting information from potential sources for the manufacturing of Radio Frequency (RF) Transmitters for the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). NASA/MSFC is seeking capability statements from all interested parties, including all socioeconomic categories of Small Businesses and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU)/Minority Institutions (MI), for the purposes of determining the appropriate level of competition and/or small business subcontracting goals for the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) RF Transmitter. The Government reserves the right to consider a Small, 8(a), Women-owned (WOSB), Service Disabled Veteran (SD-VOSB), Economically Disadvantaged Women-owned Small Business (EDWOSB) or HUBZone business set-aside based on responses received. The Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) is one part of the Mars Sample Return Campaign and is a joint effort between MSFC and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The MAV is a vehicle designed to launch from the surface of Mars and will transport Mars samples taken from the Martian surface and launch the payload into orbit for rendezvous with an orbiting spacecraft. The Earth Return Orbiter (ERO) will rendezvous with and capture the payload from orbit, and bring it back to earth. The MAV transmitter will transmit navigation and vehicle health data during the flight from launch until stage separation in order to aide in the capture of the released payload. The MAV has a downlink/transmit-only requirement for RF communications during the mission. There is currently no uplink/receive signal requirement. Therefore, only the manufacture of a device with data transmitting capabilities will be required. The transmitter will operate without any return link signal. The transmitter will be required to operate solely in transmitting data mode during the first stage of the flight. The transmitter shall have the additional capability of transmitting a carrier-only, unmodulated, continuous wave (CW) signal continuously and a repeating pattern of CW pulses with a pulse width of to be determined (TBD) seconds at a repetition rate of TBD hertz. The transmitter shall be able to switch between transmitting data mode, CW continuous mode, and CW pulse mode upon receiving a command from the flight computer. The RF transmitter shall be space-qualified and shall be capable of meeting all the performance requirements after a minimum period of five (5) years post-delivery. The RF transmitter will be required to tolerate environments of launch, 2.5 years of deep space cruise, Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL), and a storage period of approximately one (1) year on the Martian surface. Note that the RF transmitter will be in an unpowered state for a majority of the cruise except for short durations during health check-outs. For planning purposes, this requirement will involve the design, development, manufacture, testing, qualification, and delivery to NASA/MSFC of multiple RF transmitter units (please see Schedule section for details). Due to the design configuration of the MAV, mass (minimal) is a key factor in determining the selected RF transmitter. NASA/MSFC is looking for interested sources with the capabilities to provide RF transmitter units with the characteristics that meet each of the requirements listed in Parts I through V of this document. Part I: RF Transmitter Environments Thermal and Pressure Environments Non-Operating Temperatures: -40 degrees C and +40 degrees C Operational Temperatures (full performance): -25 degrees C and +50 degrees C Pressure: Ambient to high vacuum (10e-12 Torr) with rapid depressurization from ambient to high vacuum in less than 5 minutes. Transmitter must not suffer from Multi-Pactor in a vacuum environment when transmitting. Radiation Full performance after an exposure (cruise plus surface) to: Total Ionizing Dose: 12krad behind 100mil of Aluminum shielding (radial dose functions (RDF)=1) Displacement Damage Dose: 4.2e10 equivalent 1 MeV neutrons /cm^2 behind 100mil of Aluminum spherical shell (RDF=1) Single Event Effects: Single event latch-up: parts must meet a minimum LET of 75 MeV-cm^2/mg Single event upsets: correctable by onboard logic No single event functional interrupts over a period of 3 hours (this corresponds to roughly 2+ hours of warm-up time, and 15 minutes of ascent from Martian surface) Dynamic Environments Note that the following levels are for reference only; actual levels for MAV program are TBD. The environmental levels shown are for survival. Flight environments for ascent are in work. The Chart describing the MAV Mars Acoustically-Induced Random Vibration levels can be found in Attachment 1 of this RFI. Please see Attachment 1 for further details. The Tables containing the Random Vibration and Pyrotechnic Shock levels can be found in Attachment 1 of this RFI. Please see Attachment 1 for further details. Part II: RF Transmitter Interfaces Power Interface Voltage Input: 22 to 36 Volts DC, 28 V dc nominal Power Estimate: The vendor shall provide estimation of power requirements for the following transmitter modes: On and Transmitting Data On and Transmitting Carrier-only CW On and Transmitting Carrier Pulses Inrush Current Estimate: Vendor shall provide estimation for inrush current. Positive and Negative Terminals: Positive and negative terminals shall be provided RF Output Port Port Type: SMA Impedance: 50 ohms VSWR: less than 1.5:1 over a 64 kHz bandwidth centered about the transmit frequency Load Mismatch Protection: Transmitter output shall not be damaged nor degraded after operating into an open or short circuit, at any phase angle, for 10 minutes. RF Output Power: 5 Watts Data System Interface The vendor shall provide the following command/control/status/data interface(s) information: Protocol Connector Type: [The following two types are preferred] RS-422 SpaceWire Mechanical Interface The vendor shall provide the following: Maximum Mechanical Dimensions (and Volume) Mechanical Mounting Requirements (CAD Drawing) Maximum Mass: 0.25 kg Lower Mass (and Volume) are strongly preferred given the highly constrained MAV mass (and volume), and the overall impact to mission. EEE Parts Grade: The vendor shall adhere to the following: Grade 2 EEE parts will be used when available and meet design requirements. For applications where Grade 2 is not available, EEE parts will be subjected to significant up-screening to meet Grade 2 requirements. Part III: Functions & Performance Operational Modes: Transmit Data Carrier-only - [Transmits CW (Continuous Wave)] Carrier Pulses - [Transmits a CW Pulse of TBD seconds at TBD hertz] OFF / Standby Carrier Phase Noise: Limited by the template shown in Figure-1 Carrier Phase Noise Template. Figure-1 describing the Carrier Phase Noise levels can be found in Attachment 1 of this RFI. Please see Attachment 1 for further details. Discrete Spurious Spectral Lines: Limited by the template shown in the Figure-2 Discrete Spurious Spectral Lines Template. Figure-2 describing the Discrete Spurious Spectral Lines levels can be found in Attachment 1 of this RFI. Please see Attachment 1 for further details. EMI/EMC (Electromagnetic Interference / Compatibility) The vendor shall adhere to the Maximum Radiated and Conducted Emissions Limits, as well as meet the susceptibility requirements, which are provided in the following document: SRL-SFR Environmental Requirements Document (ERD); Sections 5 and 6 Part IV: RF Transmitter Specifications and Characteristics Transmitter manufacturers and vendors should be able to build the hardware to operate and adhere to the following performance parameters: Mode of Operation: Transmit Data Mode of Operation: Carrier-only CW Mode of Operation: Carrier Pulses Frequency: 401.585625 MHz Information Rate (prior to any encoding applied): 8 kbps Coded Symbol Rate (after all encoding applied): 16 kbps Coding: Convolution Coding, Rate = ½ ; Constraint Length = 7, non-inverted G2 PCM Data Encoding: Bi-Phase-L (Manchester) Symmetry of PCM Bi-Phase Waveform: Mark-to-Space Ratio between 0.98 and 1.02 Necessary Bandwidth: 64 kHz Data Specifications Data Modulation Modulation Type: BPSK [Residual Carrier] Modulation Index: 60° ± 5% Short Term Channel Symbol Rate Stability: ? 1 % from channel symbol period Channel Symbol Rate Offset (? 10,000 symbol periods): ? 0.1% from channel symbol rate Carrier Frequency Stability: Long-term Oscillator Stability: 10 ppm Short-term Oscillator Stability (? 1 minute): 1 ppm Residual Amplitude Modulation: less than 2% RMS Software / Command and Data Handling (C&DH) The vendor shall provide the following: Availability of vendor-supplied software interface for the transmitter (test software) Available user commands and corresponding telemetry responses Sample command and telemetry output Available data rate options Data interface options and rates Experience interfacing with Mars Relay Network requirements Power up and command processing timing estimates Estimates of latency between last byte and fully transmitted message Available transmitter status messages (i.e. temperature, power, settings, queue status, etc.) The transmitter should expect to receive commands from the flight computer, which are similar to the following commands: Power On Self-Test Start Data Transmission Switch Mode (i.e. off, transmit data, CW-continuous, CW-pulsed) The transmitter should expect to receive commands from the flight computer, which are similar to the following commands: Power On Self-Test Start Data Transmission Switch Mode (i.e. off, transmit data, CW-continuous, CW-pulsed) Supporting Information for Software Structure / Data Formatting The transmitter will transmit Proximity Link Transmission Units (PLTUs) as described in CCSDS 211.0-B-6 Proximity-1 Space Link Protocol – Data Link Layer, section 3.2. A PLTU contains a 24-bit attached synch marker (ASM), followed by a variable length Transfer Frame, followed by a 32 bit Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) of only the Transfer Frame. The ASM bit pattern in hexadecimal will FAF320. Typically, the PLTUs form a non-continuous serial stream, consisting of a sequence of variable-length PLTUs, which can have a delay between the end of one PLTU and the start of the next. When no PLTU is available, Idle data is transmitted to maintain synchronization. Idle data consists of the PN sequence 352EF853 (in hexadecimal) and is repeated as needed. MAV intends to send a fixed-length PLTU of approximately 238 bytes where the Transfer Frame is approximately 231 bytes. The PLTUs and Idle data are provided to the transmitter in NRZ-L format. As depicted in Figure-3 MAV Transmission Functional Concept, the transmitter will apply forward error correction (FEC) encoding to the MAV bit stream, convert the NRZ-L FEC encoded bit stream to Bi-Phase-L, and directly phase modulate the carrier. Rd is the data rate of the bitstream composed of PLTUs and Idle data measured at the encoder input. Rcs is the coded symbol rate measured at the output of the FEC encoder. And Rchs is the channel symbol rate measured at the output of the transmitter. Figure-3 describing the MAV Transmission Functional Concept can be found in Attachment 1 of this RFI. Please see Attachment 1 for further details Applicable Documents for Software Structure / Data Formatting CCSDS 211.0-B-6 Proximity-1 Space Link Protocol--Data Link Layer CCSDS 211.1-B-4 Proximity-1 Space Link Protocol--Physical Layer CCSDS 211.2-B-3 Proximity-1 Space Link Protocol--Coding and Synchronization Sublayer CCSDS 131.0-B-3 TM Synchronization and Channel Coding Part V: RFI Responses Responses to the RFI should include the following information: Supporting evidence or justification to achieve Part I specifications for either all or most of the performance categories Present design for a conceptual Transmitter and outline the risks, development areas, current Technology Readiness Level(TRL), and expected TRL at delivery Examples of applicable (including proposed) flight history of the proposed Transmitter Present estimated size, weight, and power parameters of the proposed Transmitter Present estimated performance specifications of the proposed Transmitter Present expected environments of the proposed Transmitter, and if the above environments cannot be met, provide what can be met, and if the unit is capable of being upgraded to meet these requirements Overview of capability to provide low variability and high quality Transmitters for use with the MAV Estimated development time and time to first unit providing detail to anticipated long lead items Overview of quality standards and planetary protection approaches for this mission that could be employed Qualification history of the proposed unit (if existing) in terms of radiation, thermal, and vibration environment The anticipated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this requirement is 334511. No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on beta.SAM.gov. Interested firms are responsible for monitoring this website for the release of any solicitation or synopsis. Interested firms having the required capabilities necessary to meet the above requirement described herein should submit a capability statement of no more than 10 pages (no less than 12-point font, except in figure captions) in the form of written and illustrated concepts, ideas, and descriptions of capabilities indicating the ability to perform all aspects of the effort. The subject line of the submission should be “RFI MAV RF Transmitter” and attachments should be in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or PDF format and contain the following information: 1. Name of submitter and contact information, phone number, email address and address of firm 2. Identification of business size under anticipated NAICS code 334511 3. CAGE code/DUNs number 4. Number of years in business and list of customers for the past five years: The Government encourages respondents to provide a list of customers for the past five years that helps demonstrate the respondent firm's capabilities and experiences. (Interested parties may opt to present a subset of past customers that is most relevant to the requirement.) 5. Discussion of experience relevant to the requirements above 6. Statement of capabilities and qualifications that address the respondent's ability to provide support which meets the requirements specified above 7. Discussion of flight heritage and ground testing in relevant environments, particularly radiation and susceptibility to single-event updates and radiation exposure. Place of Performance: Should this RFI result in a RFP, respondent’s facility shall be the primary place of performance. No contractor personnel will be located on-site, but they will travel occasionally to MSFC, Kennedy Space Center (KSC), or the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Some activities may require hosting of government personnel at the prime contractor’s facility. All responses shall be submitted electronically via email to Cynthia Hubbard (cynthia.a.hubbard@nasa.gov) no later than November 16, 2020 10:00 AM Central Standard Time. Phone calls will not be accepted. Please reference RFI MAV RF Transmitter in any response. This synopsis is for information and planning purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government nor will the Government pay for information solicited. At our discretion, NASA may hold meetings with respondents as needed to clarify responses and obtain further details. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. It is the respondent’s responsibility to monitor the Government wide point of entry site for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.