Active adhesion concepts for in-orbit structural construction

The in-orbit assembly of structural elements is presently addressed by means of a continuum-based theory of active-adhesion contact/impact which assumes the manufacturability of active adhesion elements by piezoelectric (and similarly behaving) materials. Block bonding characteristics can furnish an effective alternative to optimal control-based, impact surge force-mitigation strategies, especially in the numerous nonsmooth control problems that are difficult to synthesize and implement. Attention is given to design concepts employing combined serial/parallel-bonded active adhesion elements composed of cascaded piezoelectric devices.