Advancing Commercial Space

NASA has developed and patented a technology called Nanosatellite Launch Adapter System (NLAS) that maximizes the efficiency of satellite launch opportunities. NLAS increases access to space while simplifying the integration process of miniature satellites, called nanosats or cubesats, onto launch vehicles. Each complete NLAS consists of an adapter, four dispensers, and a sequencer. The adapter is mounted to the upper surface of the launch vehicle and the lower deck of the primary spacecraft. The dispensers are mounted inside the adapter and house a variety of cubesats in fully enclosed bays. NLAS is stackable, allowing for the expansion of spacecraft deployments. An NLAS sequencer can initiate a secondary sequencer, allowing for the expansion of actuator and deployment capability. NLAS provides an integrated system which meets the needs of nearly any mission. NLAS flight demonstration has shown the potential value of multiple, nanosatellites as tools for a wide array of scientific, commercial, and academic space research.

Innovators at NASA's Glenn Research Center have developed a miniature, solid-state radiation detector that can be used in situations where compact size, low weight, and low power consumption are required. Conventional scintillator-based charged particle counters rely upon a glass photomultiplier tube (PMT) to translate light energy from the radiation source into an electrical signal. Because PMTs are bulky, fragile, and require high voltages to operate, they are not well-suited for harsh environments. Glenn's technology is solid state, thus eliminating PMTs, which means the device can operate in cramped, harsh, and low-power environments. In addition, because the detector uses a low-voltage, UV-sensitive photodiode, a wave shifter is not required, improving efficiency and further minimizing weight and bulk. Originally developed for space exploration, this compact, robust particle counter can also be used in medical dosimetry, mining, oil and gas exploration, nuclear facility monitoring, and more.

Historically, satellites that stop functioning due to depleted propellant, system failures, etc., are decommissioned and replaced with a newly built satellite. However, the cost and logistical complexity of satellite replacement is significant, meaning life extension via in-orbit satellite servicing (e.g., refueling, component repair / replacement) is increasingly desirable. NASA’s Exploration & In-space Services (NExIS) division is at the forefront of satellite servicing technology development, leading the push into an era of more sustainable, affordable, and resilient spaceflight. NeXIS has developed a suite of technologies to enable the production of a satellite servicing spacecraft capable of autonomous rendezvous, docking, and servicing of satellites – including legacy satellites not designed or intended to be serviced. A key component of this suite is the Client Berthing System (CBS), a mechanical subsystem designed to rigidly berth and attach a client spacecraft to a servicing vehicle in-orbit for subsequent servicing.

Many robot operations require connecting modules, tools, or other types of hardware to accomplish assembly or servicing tasks. When working in harsh environments, robots must be enabled to make these kinds of connections without human intervention. These robotic operations must be capable of surviving all kinds of harsh environments, from outer space to the deep sea. Additionally, robot operations must be suitable for many different structures and assemblies. As a result, there is a need for a reliable robot-friendly mechanism that allows structural, electrical, and fluid connections to be made. The Robot-Driven Blind Mate Interface is capable of providing connection mechanisms for a variety of couplings and can operate in harsh environments as well.

A non-cooperative satellite is a satellite that was not designed with on-orbit servicing in mind. Compared to a cooperative servicing interface, non-cooperative interfaces pose unique difficulties and challenges. Refueling is important to resupply of propellant and required pressurants or other media that allow a satellite with depleted fuel stores to extend its life. A potential, and likely, end-of-life event for a satellite is the depletion of propellant. Historically, satellites whose hardware and software components are still functioning properly will be decommissioned or de-orbited because the lack of onboard propellant does not permit proper spacecraft attitude and navigational control. The HRT and QD System can service non-cooperative satellites, addressing the challenges presented by noncooperative interfaces in order to access, interface, and manipulate non-cooperative assets.

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has developed the Cooperative Service Valve (CSV) to facilitate the resupply of media, such as propellants and pressurants, to satellites. The CSV replaces a standard spacecraft fill and drain valve. Spacecraft outfitted with the CSV enable in-orbit servicing with less risk, lower costs, and a much higher chance of success. The tools used to interface with the CSV, both on the ground and in space, were also designed and tested by NASA. The CSV architecture and approach is extensible to all space assets that could potentially be fueled/re-fueled on and off the ground, including manned crew vehicles, planetary rovers, and space habitats.

The robotic gripper was developed at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center as part of a robotic satellite servicing mission. The gripping device can be used to autonomously or remotely grasp and control an out-of-fuel or otherwise disabled satellite. Specifically, the gripper interfaces to the separation ring (marman ring) of the client spacecraft and when closed is sufficient to constrain all six degrees of freedom of motion between the servicing spacecraft and the client. The jaws are designed with a conformable geometry which allows the same Gripper to interface to all spacecraft separation rings commonly used with Atlas V and Delta IV launch vehicles.

Brushless direct current (BLDC) motors are of interest to drive tools for in-space servicing due to their reliability, efficiency, and controllability. Current BLDC motors do not meet the needs of space environments, nor do they have common interfaces, limiting their versatility. NASA inventors have developed four BLDC motors to power a variety of tools for in-space servicing. The motors are part of the Advanced Tool Drive System (ATDS) that is attached to the end of a robotic arm providing the power for the servicing tools. While the motors have differing performance characteristics to drive various tools, they have been designed with a common gearhead for versatility within a single frame size. The motors are built to withstand the wide temperature variations and radiation conditions of geosynchronous orbit. The BLDC motors and the ATDS will be used for spacecraft servicing in manned and unmanned missions and may also apply to terrestrial robotic systems.

Innovators working at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a dust sensor for use in space environments that measures surface dust accumulation more effectively and accurately than solar cell-based methods. The Planetary Accumulation of Dust Sensor, or “PADS” for short, comprises a compact, puck-shaped form factor whose key component, a sensor disc, has a tunable optical coating from which dust accumulation is derived through measured changes in coating properties when heat is applied. For planned Moon and other planetary-body missions (Mars, asteroids), there are significant needs to understand the impacts of the dust environ-ment to support design, operations, performance impacts, etc., for scientific and overall mission objectives. NASA believes the PADS device will be useful for ensuring remote equipment operators and astronauts are aware of dust accumulation on mission critical components (e.g., radiators, solar arrays) that could lead to mission complications. The PADS device provides a solution to these needs in a simple, light-weight, low power device for measurement of dust accumulation in a space-based environment having undergone ground calibration and optimization of its key design features for the environment of interest. The Planetary Accumulation of Dust Sensor is at a technology readiness level (TRL) 6 (System/sub-system model or prototype demonstration in an operational environment), and is now available for patent licensing.

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a technology that can isolate a single direction of tensile strain in biaxially woven material. This is accomplished using traditional digital image correlation (DIC) techniques in combination with custom red-green-blue (RGB) color filtering software. DIC is a software-based method used to measure and characterize surface deformation and strain of an object. This technology was originally developed to enable the extraction of circumferential and longitudinal webbing strain information from material comprising the primary restraint layer that encompasses inflatable space structures. Whereas traditional methods of monochrome DIC can only measure strain in each of the biaxial directions separately, this DIC with RGB color filtering technology can measure strain in a single analysis. The analysis process begins by applying a speckled pattern to the subject material to which multiple photographic images are generated from a set of stereo cameras. These images are correlated/analyzed in post-processing to determine relative displacement of the speckles across a surface when testing for tensile strain. Traditional DIC software assumes a solid material substrate, but in interwoven materials the substrate consists of bi-directional patterns. This causes errors in strain data derived when the analysis is performed by DIC software alone.

Researchers at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed the Handheld Metal Tube Straightener designed to remove bends within 3.5 inches of a tube end. The tool straightens thin, malleable 4mm metal tubes like those used for fuel, pneumatic or hydraulic pressurized lines. Commercially available tube straighteners use rollers to straighten long metal tubing, but the spacing of the rollers typically prevent or complicate bend-removal near the end of the tube and can also leave linear scratches on the straightened area. The handheld tube straightener can remove small and large bends near and at the tip of a tube so that it can be swaged into any commercial swage fitting. The Handheld Metal Tube Straightener was successfully used during a spacewalk on NASA's "EVA 61 Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS)" repair mission.

Reducing dust accumulation on any surface is key for lunar missions as dust can damage or impair the performance of everything from deployable systems to solar cells on the Moon’s surface. Electrodynamic dust shields (EDSs) are a key method to actively clean surfaces by running high voltages (but low currents) through electrodes on the surface. The forces generated by the voltage efficiently remove built up, electrically charged dust particles. Innovators at the NASA Kennedy Space Center have developed a new transparent EDS for removing dust from space and lunar solar cells among other transparent surfaces. The new coatings operate at half the voltage of existing EDSs while being 90% thinner. These capabilities are enabled by an innovative combination of electrode patterning and a thin silica protective layer. The reduced thickness and lower voltage operation expands possibilities for integrating EDSs onto transparent surfaces across industries.

In space applications, seals for hatches, suit ports, airlocks, and docking systems for pressurized volumes such as habitats, rovers, and space suits must be kept clean. This is necessary to achieve the extremely low leak rates required to ensure that crews will have sufficient breathable air for extended missions on planetary surfaces. Dusty environments, such as those of the Moon and Mars, pose challenges because seals (elastomeric and otherwise) – as dust accumulates on them – will no longer perform as designed, substantially increasing leak rates. Similarly, terrestrial applications involving environments with high dust concentration and pressurized systems (e.g., mining, material handling) must maintain clean seals to ensure safety and uptime. Motivated by the hazard lunar regolith poses to seals – and thus to achieving a sustained lunar presence – researchers in the Electrostatics and Surface Physics Laboratory at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) have developed seals that actively self-clean in a continuous or periodic manner.

Space is a very unforgiving environment. Charged particles, vacuum, and thermal extremes are just a few of the conditions that make this environment challenging to explore. Lunar dust on the surface of the Moon adds complexity to this situation. Dust can be a health hazard to astronauts if they breathe it in, as well as degrade materials, decrease power generation of solar panels, and cause gasket leaks. It also acts as a blackbody, becoming hot if left in direct sunlight. This is a problem for thermal radiators where the main function is to radiate heat away from an object. If dust lands on the thermal radiator, the unit will less effectively reject heat, and it will overheat. This can lead to mission failure. Therefore, methods to mitigate the accumulation of dust need to be developed. The electrodynamic dust shield (EDS) is capable of actively removing dust from thermal radiator surfaces. NASA scientists and engineeers have invented a novel efficient coating system with EDS capabilities for thermal radiators.

Lunar landing and launch pads represent critical infrastructure for enabling a sustained presence on the Moon or other planetary bodies. Such a Moon presence would require repeated lunar landings and takeoffs, preferably near an outpost or habitat. In the absence of takeoff and landing pads, such vehicles could project lunar regolith at high velocities, “sandblasting” the surrounding infrastructure and causing damage. Conventional paver technology does not have the capability to withstand the loads experienced by landing pads during vehicle landing or take off. Use of existing technology may result in pavers being displaced by the plume of the vehicle, or exhaust from the vehicle entering spaces between paver seams and eroding the regolith underneath the landing pad. To address this issue, engineers at NASA's Kennedy Space Center and Sidus Space developed a novel interlocking paver system enabling the robotic construction of high stability vertical takeoff and landing pads.

Thermal control coatings, i.e. coatings with different visible versus infrared emission, have been used by NASA on the Orbiter and Hubble Telescope to reflect sunlight, while allowing heat rejection via infrared emission. However, these coatings absorb at least 6% of the Sun's irradiant power, limiting the minimum temperature that can be reached to about 200 K. NASA needs better solar reflectors to keep cryogenic fuel and oxidizers cold enough to be maintained passively in deep space for future missions. This new thermal control coating material, developed for use as a spray on coating or rigid tiles, reflects essentially all solar radiation in the space environment. The novel material has the potential to be an enabler for long-term storage of cryogenic liquids and propellants in space. It can also support the long-term operation of low-temperature devices and systems used on space craft.

Innovators at the NASA Langley Research Center have developed a manufacturing technique to generate recyclable feedstocks for on-demand additive manufacturing. Additive manufacturing is a rapidly advancing art with significant recent improvements in starting materials. One common limitation has been that produced articles cannot be recycled without substantial energy costs. Development of a manufacturing technique that can generate precise, mechanically robust articles that could be reverted to feedstock for use in subsequent article manufacturing would be highly desirable for applications including long duration extra-terrestrial exploration mission planning. NASA's new manufacturing technique uses polymer-coated epoxy micro-particle systems as a recyclable feedstock material that can be used not only for in-space additive manufacturing during long-term human spaceflight but also for a wealth of applications on Earth. The resulting articles are more chemically and mechanically robust compared to the state-of-the-art materials used for most 3D printing applications.

NASA Langley Research Center has developed a shapeable radiation shield made from fiber metal laminates. The technology was developed based on a need for better performing shielding of sensitive spacecraft electronics. Beyond spacecraft electronics, the invention has uses for radiation protective clothing, radioactive fluid piping shields, nuclear reactor shields, and other applications.

A sister to SHEARLESS booms, the Bistable Collapsible Tubular Mast (Bi-CTM) boom, offers compact storage on a cylindrical drum that deploys a composite material boom with a closed tubular cross section that has unmatched bending and torsional stiffness for the mass of the thin-shell structure. The Bi-CTM is also scalable for long booms given the load carrying capacity. The Bi-CTM's two omega-shaped composite thin-shells form a bonded closed section which can spool onto a relatively compact drum for compact launch packaging and provide unparalleled stiffness to mass ratio when deployed. When using the booms as beam-column structures with a primarily compressive load component, this ratio determines the structural mass efficiency of the components, making the Bi-CTM exceptional for lightweight deployable structural rigging with higher load demands. The improved dimensional and thermal stability offered by the closed-section shape and low coefficient of thermal expansion materials of the Bi-CTM, enables the use of the boom technology in precision applications that require high stability in harsh environments.

NASA's Langley Research Center has developed the SHEARLESS composite boom with a final cross-section shape that is lenticular and is flexible enough to allow elastic flattening and subsequent coiling around a cylindrical reel / drum. The torsional stiffness of the structure is also greatly increased and becomes two orders of magnitude larger than that of the individual tape-spring components alone. The innovation enables a lightweight structure that can be stowed on a reel without appreciable shear stresses developing in its constitutive composite parts. This allows for unprecedentedly small coiling diameters for the total thickness of the structure, which can enable highly compact designs such as those required in CubeSat/small satellite applications.

NASA's Langley Research Center offers a novel lifting and precision positioning device with hybrid functional characteristics of both crane-type lifting devices and robotic manipulators. The design of the Lunar Surface Manipulation System (LSMS) allows for fine positioning with complete control over both translation and rotation of the payload. In addition, the design permits several other operations using a wide variety of special purpose tools, such as a bucket, pallet forks, grappling devices, sensor and visualization packages, and dexterous robotic arms that can be quickly added to the tip. NASA is seeking development partners and potential licensees.

Innovators at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center have developed a ruggedized infrared (IR) camera system for harsh environments. The new technology is a space-rated IR camera assembly based on a FLIR Systems Boson® Model No. 640. Advanced modifications allow the camera to survive high-vibration environments (e.g., launch) and improve heat removal for operation in a range of harsh conditions including vacuum. Designed for NASA use in Earth orbit and beyond, the camera has a combination of characteristics not currently available in commercial camera offerings. The IR camera assembly has been fully tested and qualified for operation in extreme conditions including high vibration, shock, vacuum, and temperature cycling. Although designed for space applications, the assembly may also be valuable for harsh environment terrestrial uses.