EPM Grippers, DogTags, and LISA Arms for In-Space Inspection and Servicing

Jonathan Goff | Founder & CEO | jongoff@altius-space.com | 2 February 2017

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Overview

• Altius Snapshot • Previous Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work

• Sticky Boom • Electrostatic Adhesion • Synthetic Gecko Adhesion • Magnetic Jamming Grippers

• Current Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work • Electropermanent Magnetic Grippers • Robotic Interface “DogTags” • Low-Inertia STEM Arm (LISA) Manipulators

• Applications • Bulldog • ISS Assistive Robots • UAV Inspection/Manipulation 2

Altius Snapshot • Founded in July 2010 • Located in Broomfield, CO • Space Robotics and Technology Startup • Currently 8 employees • Primarily bootstrapping off of Commercial, NASA, and DARPA R&D

contracts, developing custom mechanical and robotic solutions • Focus areas include capture robotics, launch vehicle/spacecraft

mechanisms, heliogyro solar sails, and telerobotics • Capabilities include, design, analysis, prototyping, and environmental

testing (TVAC, shock/vibe, and air-bearing testing)

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Previous Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: Sticky Boom™ Non-cooperative Capture System

• Non-cooperative capture robot arm with two key parts: • The “sticky” part: non-

cooperative capture head • The “boom” part: long reach

extendible/retractable robot arm

• Invented for enabling rendezvous with objects that still have some relative motion • Rocket upper stages for in-

space refueling • Space Debris • Mars Sample Return Canisters

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Sticky Boom™ and Direct Rendezvous are protected by US Patents US8979034 B2 and US8967548 B2

Previous Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: Electrostatic Adhesion

• Gripping using electrostatic forces between flexible electrodes and a target substrate • High voltage (kV) • Low power (mW) • Works best if loaded in shear • Capable of >2psi shear force

depending on target surface • Can grip both conductive and

non-conductive materials

• Being developed by SRI International and GrabIt Inc.

• Can be combined with Gecko Adhesion • Dr Spenko, Illinois Institute of

Technology

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Previous Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: Synthetic Gecko Adhesion

• Gripping using Van Der Waals forces between arrays of microscopic wedges or fibers and the target surface • No power gripping • Also works best in shear • Works best on flat, very smooth

surfaces

• Being researched by a wide range of groups for space and terrestrial gripping • NASA JPL/Stanford • Draper Labs • Berkley • And many others

• Can be combined with electroadhesion 6

Previous Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: Magnetic Jamming Grippers

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• Magnetic Jamming Grippers have magnetically actuated soft and a rigid states • Either using ferromagnetic

powders or MR fluids • When the magnetic field is off,

the gripper is soft an can conform to a wide range of targets (tools, handle bars, etc)

• When the magnet is turned on the gripper rigidizes allowing manipulation

• Altius and Empire Robotics tested granular media prototypes during their ARM BAA Phase I effort

• University of Maryland has ongoing research on MR grippers for NASA

Current Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: ElectroPermanent Magnetic Gripping

• ElectroPermanent magnets (EPMs) are electrically switchable permanent magnets • Power only used to change magnetic state • Can be optimized for high contact grip force, distance attraction, or multiple modes

• Can be used to firmly grip thin ferromagnetic patches of material • Grip forces >10psi are easily achievable, even with thin ferromagnetic target patches

(.005-.015in thick) • Useful grip levels even through moderately thick coatings/insulation • Attraction at a distance for much easier capture of tumbling targets • Much stronger grip than electrostatic or gecko adhesion

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Current Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: Robotic Interface DogTags

• Robotic interface combining: • Long-range optical fiducials

for relative navigation/localization

• Short-range data codes for object identification

• Lightweight ferromagnetic patch for magnetic gripping

• Can be attached via several means: • Plated onto metal or plastic

surfaces • Adhesively bonded to

surfaces after the fact • Sewn into soft-pack bags

• Currently in the conceptual development phase

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Current Capture/Manipulation Robotics Work: LISA (Low-Inertia STEM Arm) Manipulators

• Extendable/retractable robot arms mounted to free-flying robots like SPHERES, Astrobee, or Quadrotor UAVs

• Enables inspections, light-duty maintenance and repairs, physical manipulation, sample transfer, and tool husbandry.

• Can use a wide range of capture end-effectors • EPM Grippers/Anchors • Magnetic Jamming Grippers

• Altius has previously built larger-scale STEM Arm proof of concept prototypes

• Currently planning an Astrobee-scale LISA manipulator prototype 10

Applications: Bulldog Backup End-of-Life Disposal Services

• Bulldog capture tug uses an EPM Sticky Boom™ to capture DogTag-equipped dead satellites and tow them to a disposal orbit • Enables capture and

detumble of dead spacecraft using a low-cost spacecraft bus

• Critical for safe operation of LEO megaconstellations

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Applications : ISS Assistive Free-Flyers

• LISA Arms with a combination of EPM Grippers, DogTags, and potentially MR Grippers

• Enables light-duty manipulation of environment • Pre-arrival outfitting of

habitats • Cargo handling logistics • Tool husbandry • Sample transfer • Maintenance • Emergency operations

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Applications: UAV Inspections

• Quadrotor UAVs with LISA Arms and potentially EPM grippers can provide contact inspection of hazardous locations

• Ultrasonic inspections of smoke stacks or remote pipelines

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Jonathan Goff, Founder & CEO jongoff@altius-space.com www.altius-space.com @AltiusSpace