Robotic In-Space Manufacturing Demo

In the next decade, both government and commercial entities will increasingly rely on robotic in-space assembly, manufacturing and servicing for the setup and maintenance of future space assets for civil and commercial missions. Intelsat published an analysis (AIAA Sep 2014) that calculated that on-orbit servicing could save commercial telecomunications companies alone $28M per year per spacecraft. While fields of autonomy, robotics, and space engineering are all making progress, true representative in-space manufacturing and assembly as an end-to-end process has not been widely demonstrated, despite the UK having a strong knowledge base in all these three areas. This project will assess the feasibility of combining the Lightweight Advanced Robotic Arm Demonstrator (LARAD) technologies, including its metallic-composite structure, to robotically demonstrate the construction of representative space structures in a laboratory environment. The Phase-2 demonstration will be a major stepping stone in providing our end-user with the means to fly an actual in-space manufacturing spacecraft in the early 2020's. Both phase-1 and phase-2 of this demonstrator will enhance the UK's momentum in the robotic, autonomous and space technology sectors.