Taking aeronautics pressure
The TP 3100 is the result of 12 months internal development and manufacturing processes stabilisation by MEMSCAP teams. The main aeronautical applications are engine control, cabin pressure, air data and altimeters. The company also hopes to cover specific space vehicle applications.
DO-178 is a set of avionics standards published in 1982 by the US Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics (RTCA) as “Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification”. This was developed by the global avionics industry to establish software considerations for developers, installers and users when aircraft equipment design is implemented using microcomputer techniques. In Europe, the standard was approved as ED-12 by the European Organisation for Civil Aviation Equipment (EUROCAE). An update to DO-178 was published in 1985 - DO-178A. EUROCAE also published a matching update to ED-12 - ED-12A. A comprehensive update to DO-178B by RTCA and ED-12B by EUROCAE was made in 1992. This is the current working version of the specification.
DO-178B/ED-12B projects must be certified as a system, not a standalone component, as for the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61508 software standard. MEMSCAP’s product therefore consists of a MEMS pressure sensor on a printed circuit board and related software. The levels A-E refer to failure types from “catastrophic” (A) to “no effect” on the aircraft or on pilot workload (E). Level B covers software whose failure would cause or contribute to a hazardous/severe failure condition.
