A spacecraft coupling system includes a locking component that can be deformed and placed into a stable state that locks one component into a mating component, and can easily be released from the deformed state, decoupling the two components. The locking component may include a central ring, a plurality of leaf elements arranged at the perimeter of the locking component, and a plurality of fins that extend outward from the ring to the plurality of leaf elements. A rotation of the ring element while the component is held stationary causes the fins to urge the leaf elements toward the receiving surface areas and to subsequently tension the leaf elements against surfaces on the mating component. To reduce cost and complexity, the locking component comprises a metal, such as titanium, that can be formed using an additive manufacturing process, commonly termed a 3-D printing process.
PRINTED SPACECRAFT SEPARATION SYSTEM
2017-10-05
Patent
Electronic Resource
English
IPC: | B64G Raumfahrt , COSMONAUTICS / B33Y ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING , Additive (generative) Fertigung, d. h. die Herstellung von dreidimensionalen [3D] Bauteilen durch additive Abscheidung, additive Agglomeration oder additive Schichtung, z. B. durch 3D- Drucken, Stereolithografie oder selektives Lasersintern |
A Simplified Passive Spacecraft Separation System
NTIS | 1966
|Spring Separation of Spacecraft
NTIS | 1963
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