Linkin Bees| Let's Connect

Let's Connect

For bigger spacecraft capable of executing bigger missions, some of the assembly may be done in space. Your challenge is to design a simple approach that enables components to be assembled in space.

Orbital Hive

Summary

Our project is highly focused on six main topics./The growth in the number of satellites and and vector launches to send into orbit./The need to decrease the price of space travel./Space debris due to short life cycle of satellites./Strong maintenance issues./Logistic inefficiency due to fully assembled payloads./Low scalability of actual orbitant products.Once the rocket arrives and it is connected to the assembly unit (Worker Bee), the construction phase can start;The assembly unit is composed by automated robotic arms that assemble from the structural element to the internal components;The assembly unit can reverse the project by disassembling if it is necessary in maintenance.

How We Addressed This Challenge

We developed an orbital assembly station in order to fix few issues that the older generation of orbital station had.These Issues are:




  • Launch logistic inefficiency
  • Maintenance issues
  • Lifecycle of satellites and modules
  • Low scalability of orbitant product


The assembly station could assemble and disassemble, in orbit, standard parts of modules or customized parts.

The station would work as an embedded system designed to be a link between the vector and the final product, an example of the functioning system will be in stages:




  • First stage, MATERIAL ACQUIREMENT, the vector from earth leaves the payload close to the assembly station, the stock would be stored functionally to the assembly phase.
  • The second stage, ORBITAL ASSEMBLY, the orbital assembler links the elements inside itself, 
  • Third stage, DOCKING,the assembled modules are handled outside in order to dock between each other.
How We Developed This Project

Our Group had an interest in design and problem solving which is why we decided to do the Let's Connect challenge. We developed the design using Sketchup. We tried to resolve some problems finding the materials that would be durable enough to survive a launch to space. We developed an efficient module Because of the problems listed, we ended up making adjustments to our initial design. We enjoyed being given the task to design a model which is a something we usually don’t get the opportunities to do, We also had pretty effective time management skills.

How We Used Space Agency Data in This Project

We tried to make a module that was a larger version of an honeycomb in a Hive. The modules were very simple and easy to assemble in space. As we continued the design, we did end up adjusting it a bit.

We also looked at drawings and blueprints of the ISS and Falcon 9 (Spacex) to get a better idea of what is commonly used as materials and what kind of design we had to develop and tried to incorporate some of that into our project. We also looked at a page on the ESA site to give us some background and basic information about space flight.

Project Demo
Data & Resources

https://asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/open-data/access-the-data.asp

https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xP4_Q7iIlb0&ab_channel=NASALangleyResearchCenter

https://exoplanets.nasa.gov/exep/technology/in-space-assembly/

Tags
#hivecell #space #newhorizon #efficiency #assembler #connection
Judging
This project was submitted for consideration during the Space Apps Judging process.