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Graphite Composite Booms with Integral HingesA document discusses lightweight instrument booms under development for use aboard spacecraft. A boom of this type comprises a thin-walled graphite fiber/ matrix composite tube with an integral hinge that can be bent for stowage and later allowed to spring back to straighten the boom for deployment in outer space. The boom design takes advantage of both the stiffness of the composite in tubular geometry and the flexibility of thin sections of the composite. The hinge is formed by machining windows in the tube at diametrically opposite locations so that there remain two opposing cylindrical strips resembling measuring tapes. Essential to the design is a proprietary composite layup that renders the hinge tough yet flexible enough to be bendable as much as 90 in either of two opposite directions. When the boom is released for deployment, the torque exerted by the bent hinge suffices to overcome parasitic resistance from harnesses and other equipment, so that the two sections of the hinge snap to a straight, rigid condition in the same manner as that of measuring tapes. Issues addressed in development thus far include selection of materials, out-of-plane bending, edge cracking, and separation of plies.
Document ID
20110013619
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Other - NASA Tech Brief
Authors
Alexander, Wes
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Carlos, Rene
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Rossoni, Peter
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Sturm, James
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Date Acquired
August 25, 2013
Publication Date
December 1, 2006
Publication Information
Publication: NASA Tech Briefs, December 2006
Subject Category
Man/System Technology And Life Support
Report/Patent Number
GSC-14896-1
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
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