Two purposes for servicing space infrastructure: the Walking Manipulator in focus

For a long time, Earth-based manufacturing and assembly has been the answer for any infrastructural and service activities that happen in space.

Space structures headed for orbit go through rigorous quality and resilience tests, and must have the propensity to withstand the mechanical stress of a launch to space. They must also be constructed to fit a launcher’s size and accommodation specificities. This is highly constraining and unsustainable, and proves the utility for in-orbit servicing, manufacturing & assembly (ISMA), a growing need in the space economy. Instead of trying to adhere to restrictive conditions of rocket launches, the switch to ISMA enables servicing through robotic architecture. For an industry that saw?180 orbital launches ?in 2022, robotic capabilities can fill the void for a less constraining solution to servicing and assembly in space. But, how does ISMA support longevity and sustainability of orbital structures in space? Here are two reasons.

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ISMA lowers risks

The costs for human spaceflight are tremendous, and astronauts are frequently performing their tasks in the harsh environment of space, at risk of life. Through servicing, a spacecraft can be inspected, altered, repaired after its initial launch. This, although not often, has usually been performed by astronauts who walk outside their spacecraft in what is known as?extra vehicular activity . They conduct experiments, test new equipment, repair spacecraft or even satellites on their space walk. Instead of faulty space infrastructure being brought back to Earth for repairs, astronauts perform any servicing required in-situ, as was done with?the Hubble Telescope . Evidently, this carries great physical and financial risk, and makes ISMA an attractive alternative, because it lowers these risks and promises to reduce the costs of such interventions.

ISMA enables greater efficiency

Space systems can be assembled using pre-made parts. Manufacturing and assembling structures in space will allow for the production of lighter, larger and efficient orbital systems that may be of a higher quality, because they have been manufactured or assembled in environments that are free of Earth’s constraints. On Earth, size and weight are an issue. To assemble a sizeable structure like a satellite or an antenna in space means the build is limited by constraints like the rocket size and design that will carry the components to space. In the NewSpace economy, larger structures will likely be developed. But, getting them into orbit from Earth is uncertain because rockets might not have the capacity to achieve this, and there is anyway a limit of how it may scale up. From antenna reflectors for telecom satellites to space based solar power (SBSP) mega infrastructures, the possibilities are numerous with ISMA.

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What is Space Applications Services doing for ISMA?

The?Walking Manipulator ?developed at Space Applications Services, is congruent with ISMA needs for the age of NewSpace. It seeks to address the demand for ISMA services such as satellite servicing, surface mobility and re-supply services. The objective of the Walking Manipulator is to trigger a transformation of commercial space activity by aiming for greater resilience and capacity, and less financial strain. It is a mobile manipulator that captures, manipulates and positions spacecraft modules, while repositioning itself as deemed necessary on the spacecraft or directly on the modules. It moves and carries payloads over large distances using?HOTDOCK s (standard robotic mating interfaces that support mechanical, data, power and thermal transfer) as end-effectors. The Walking Manipulator is also built in a modular fashion, which means its configuration, number of degrees of freedom, limbs dimension and actuators torque can be customised to a large range of in-orbit servicing applications such as payloads manipulation (ORU), inspection and repair, or in-orbit spacecraft reconfiguration,

ISMA shifts the terrain from traditional approaches of manufacturing, assembling, and validating space hardware on the ground, to enabling direct in-orbit manufacturing and assembly using robotics, autonomy, and modularity. The Walking Manipulator – an enabler for efficient and practicable robotic interventions in ISMA – addresses NewSpace market needs for sustainable solutions.

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Contact us for more information: www.spaceapplications.com/contact-us

Watch a?demo ?of the Walking Manipulator

ICYMI: Mating a gripper ?on the Walking Manipulator