Optical membrane heating and temperature control method and apparatus

Abstract

Methods and systems for heating a space deployed membrane assembly are provided. The membrane assembly can include one or more framed sections. Each section can include a composite membrane having a membrane substrate and a transparent, electrically conductive resistive coating. The composite membrane is held within a frame. Electrically conductive bus bars are provided and are placed in intimate electrical contact with the resistive coating. The electrically conductive bus bars are generally arranged, on opposite sides of the perimeter of the membrane. A controller passes current between selected bus bars, with different bus bars operative to pass current between them at different times. The magnitude of the voltage applied to the bus bars, the location of the bus bars, the operational sequence of powering the bus bars, and the time over which current is passed between a selected pair of bus bars, are selected to provide substantially uniform time averaged heating of the membrane.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.