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US 6,318,674 B1Granted
Power sphere deployment method
AssigneeThe Aerospace Corporation
InventorEdward J. Simburger
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A deployment method unfurls a plurality of flat panels interconnected by rotating hinges into a predetermined curved surface such as a spherical enclosure for use as a solar panel sphere or as any other arbitrary curved surface, for example, as a curved geodetic tent for terrestrial recreational use. Internal supporting struts and interconnecting panel frames and hinges are inflated during unfurling to automatically form the curved surface.
Claims14
A method for deploying an approximated curved surface, the method comprising the steps of,
- compressing a supporting strut,
- stacking the flat panels attached to the strut to form a stack of flat panels by rotation about hinges, each of the flat panels are polygonal in shape having at least one hinge on a respective at least one side of the respective flat panel,
- extending the strut between a proximal end and the distal end, the flat panels being attached to the distal end and being separated from the proximal end, and
- unfurling the stack of flat panels during rotation about the hinges, the hinges serving to angularly position the panels relative to each other to form the approximated curved surface.
1 more element
A method for deploying a spacecraft having a payload, the method comprising the steps of,
- compressing a first strut attached to the payload, the first strut having a first proximal end attached to the payload and having a first distal end extending from the payload,
- compressing a second strut attached to the payload, the second strut having a second proximal end attached to the payload and having a second distal end extending from the payload,
- stacking onto a first flat cap panel attached to the first distal end a first set of flat polygonal panels having a first set of hinges, each of the first set of flat polygonal panels having at least one of the first set of hinges on at least one respective side of the first set of flat polygonal panels, the first set of flat polygonal panels and the first cap polygonal panel forming a first hemisphere of panels, the first cap panel being polygonal in shape and having a plurality of hinges of the first set of hinges at each side of the first flat cap panel,
- stacking onto a second flat cap panel attached to the second distal end a second set of flat polygonal panels having a second set of hinges, each of the second set of flat polygonal panels having at least one of the second set of hinges on at least one respective side of the second set of flat polygonal panels, the second set of flat polygonal panels and the second cap polygonal panel forming a second hemisphere of panels, the second cap panel being polygonal in shape and having a plurality of hinges of the second set of hinges at each side of the first flat cap panel,
- deploying the spacecraft in space,
- extending the first and second struts to extend the first and second stacks of first and second flat polygonal panel away from each other, and
- unfurling the first and second stacks of flat polygonal panels by respective rotation about the first and second sets of hinges, the hinges serving to angularly position the panels relative to each other to form the first and second hemisphere of panels approximating a sphere.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.