Improved Ball-and-Socket Docking Mechanism

A proposed docking mechanism would form a ball-and-socket joint in the docked condition. The mechanism could tolerate significant initial misalignment because it would include an alignment cone that would guide the ball into the socket. Like other ball-and-socket joints, the joint would have three rotational degrees of freedom. This docking mechanism would be a successor to the one described in Passive Capture Joint With Three Degrees of Freedom (MFS-31146), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 22, No. 7 (July 1998), page 65. It would contain most of the components of the prior mechanism, plus some additional components that would expand its capabilities.