Author Topic: Dextre and RRM complete record breaking week of robotics on ISS  (Read 7333 times)

Online Chris Bergin

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Offline Longhorn John

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That was a great read Pete, thanks! RRM is very cool.

Offline robertross

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Great one Pete. Nice to see Canada shine  :)

GO Dextre!

Offline marshallsplace

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Thanks for a great read!

Nice to see Dextre work out :)

Offline jacqmans

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Dextre’s Most Dexterous Task:

Canadian Space Agency Robot Sets Record for Precision   

 
Longueuil, Quebec, March 12, 2012 – Dextre, the Canadian Space Agency’s robotic handyman on board the International Space Station (ISS), has accomplished the most intricate work ever performed by a robot in space. Over three days (March 7-9), Dextre successfully concluded the initial phases of the Robotic Refueling Mission with unprecedented precision. A collaboration between NASA and the Canadian Space Agency, the Robotic Refueling Mission was designed to demonstrate the ability of using robots to refuel and service existing satellites in space—especially those not designed for repair. The mission also marks the first time Dextre was used for a technology research and development demonstration on board the Station.

“The Robotic Refueling Mission required surgical precision and Dextre succeeded each task on the first attempt,” said Steve MacLean, President of the Canadian Space Agency. “It’s the robotic equivalent of threading a needle while standing on the end of a diving board. With thirty years of experience flowing through the iconic Canadarm, Canadarm2 and now Dextre, Canada has honed its skills in space robotics to millimetre precision.”

 For the Robotic Refueling Mission, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center designed and built a mock satellite (roughly the size of a washing machine) fitted with various caps, nozzles and valves like those found on satellites. The module contains four specialized tools that Dextre can use to interact with these diverse interfaces. To conclude the initial checkout phase of the mission, Dextre’s duties included: retrieving and testing three of the tools to ensure they survived the rigours of launch; releasing seven launch locks that secured four small tool adapters during the module’s flight to the Space Station; and then cutting two razor-thin wires fastening valve caps to the module. One of these cuts required the 3.7-metre-high Dextre to slide a tiny hook under a wire with only about a millimetre of clearance—the most precise task ever attempted by Canada’s state-of-the-art robot. Operations on board the Space Station were choreographed and coordinated by international ground crews at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas; Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama; and the Canadian Space Agency's control center in St. Hubert, Quebec.

RRM operations will tentatively resume in May 2012 with the completion of the initial phase. Dextre will be challenged even further in the summer months with the highly anticipated RRM Refueling task, which will require the robot to transfer fuel from one of the RRM tools to a refueling port on the mock satellite. 
Jacques :-)

Offline Robert Thompson

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"The next scheduled operations using RRM will not occur until May 2012, where Part 2 of the Gas Fittings Removal task will be performed, followed in the summer timeframe by the main task for which RRM was designed – the actual demonstration of a removal of a fuel cap and the transfer of a simulated liquid fuel."

Would this technology get licensed? How would it make it to private capitol? Could you attach a next gen Dexter to a traveling hypergolic depot? This is really sweet news.

Offline Danderman

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So ... what is going to happen to the washing machine sized mock satellite when this is all over??

Offline robertross

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So ... what is going to happen to the washing machine sized mock satellite when this is all over??


Likely Jetison or burnup in VV would be my thought

Offline synchrotron

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So ... what is going to happen to the washing machine sized mock satellite when this is all over??


Likely Jetison or burnup in VV would be my thought

I'd have thought they'd be more interested in long duration exposure effects of function and seals on the valves with accelerated thermal cycling in LEO. Comsats are up there for a really long time before they need refueling.

Offline robertross

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So ... what is going to happen to the washing machine sized mock satellite when this is all over??


Likely Jetison or burnup in VV would be my thought

I'd have thought they'd be more interested in long duration exposure effects of function and seals on the valves with accelerated thermal cycling in LEO. Comsats are up there for a really long time before they need refueling.

It's only using a susbtitute fluid for fuel, rather than hydrazine, so the seals are not likely the same.

Besides, likely those same seals are on the vehicles presently on orbit, and they are holding up fine (that we know of). The critical ones will be in the ammonia loop (for ISS), especially the rotary coupler in the SARJ.

Offline synchrotron

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I'd have thought they'd be more interested in long duration exposure effects of function and seals on the valves with accelerated thermal cycling in LEO. Comsats are up there for a really long time before they need refueling.

It's only using a susbtitute fluid for fuel, rather than hydrazine, so the seals are not likely the same.

Besides, likely those same seals are on the vehicles presently on orbit, and they are holding up fine (that we know of). The critical ones will be in the ammonia loop (for ISS), especially the rotary coupler in the SARJ.

No-one has ever opened an FDV in GEO.  The harshest environment would be seal exposure to MON3, not hydrazine.  Benign fluid notwithstanding, the mechanical sealing after long durations is a major technological risk.

Offline robertross

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I'd have thought they'd be more interested in long duration exposure effects of function and seals on the valves with accelerated thermal cycling in LEO. Comsats are up there for a really long time before they need refueling.

It's only using a susbtitute fluid for fuel, rather than hydrazine, so the seals are not likely the same.

Besides, likely those same seals are on the vehicles presently on orbit, and they are holding up fine (that we know of). The critical ones will be in the ammonia loop (for ISS), especially the rotary coupler in the SARJ.

No-one has ever opened an FDV in GEO.  The harshest environment would be seal exposure to MON3, not hydrazine.  Benign fluid notwithstanding, the mechanical sealing after long durations is a major technological risk.


Agreed, but is this test unit really set up for seal testing, or do you use items currently on orbit, especially ones more than 10 years?

(not that we want to try cycling critical valves on the ISS for testing purposes)  ;)

I'd say we have a real satellite, one that's near end-of-life and has nothing to lose, as our test subject for this purpose. (cue new robotics mission) :)

Offline synchrotron

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You have to do seal testing as nominal part of the refueling operation. You need to know that you aren't pumping fluid into open space and you need to check seal integrity before disengaging from the valve.

Offline Space Pete

So ... what is going to happen to the washing machine sized mock satellite when this is all over??

The actual valves on RRM are all attached to removable task boards, and I believe there are plans to launch more task boards to RRM in the future.

After that, RRM will burn up, probably in a Dragon Trunk.

And then, the GSFC SSCO will use the lessons learned from RRM for the Robotic Servicing Mission - the first actual demonstration mission to refuel a real satellite. :)
http://ssco.gsfc.nasa.gov/robotic_servicing_mission.html
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Online AnalogMan

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Talking of GSFC and their future plans, this Request for Information (RFI) was recently posted.  It includes the possibility of purchasing flight qualified robotic arms at some later date.

Robot System For Use in Geosynchronous Earth Orbit
Solicitation Number: NNG12FA83-RFI posted March 9, 2012
http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/synopsis.cgi?acqid=150535

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is soliciting information to conduct market research to improve its understanding regarding the current state-of-the-art of available space robot systems. NASA is seeking broad information concerning existing robot systems that are relevant to long duration spacecraft missions designed to operate in Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO).

Background and Study Plan:

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has undertaken a study regarding the feasibility, practicality, and cost of operating spacecraft for long duration mission lifetimes in GEO. One particular area of this study that is of keen interest to GSFC is the availability of existing robot systems for long-term usage at GEO to conduct servicing of other existing satellites. This RFI augments past studies to identify relevant and interested partners to join GSFC in the development of these various systems.

1. Robot System Descriptions:
Based on studies conducted over the last few years, NASA/GSFC envisions 2 or 3 robot arms, approximately 2 meters in length, mounted on a satellite bus to be used for autonomous capture and servicing tasks. The robot system is to include only the shoulder, elbow, and wrist actuators; a NASA/GSFC-developed tool drive system will be attached to the end of the arm. Electronics to drive the actuators is considered part of the overall robot system that is of interest in this RFI.

2. Technical Specifications:
NASA/GSFC is interested in a robot system that:
•Has 7 degrees-of-freedom
•Is roughly 2-3 meters in length
•Is designed for the thermal and radiation environment at GEO
•Has a 10 kg payload capacity at the end of the arm when the arm is operated in 1-g


•Responses must include a Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate for: three (3) flight arms, one (1) qualification unit and one (1) engineering unit with associated electronics.

•Respondents must specify earliest possible delivery dates of the following deliverables: one (1) engineering unit, one (1) qualification unit, and three (3) flight arms with associated electronics from the date of any potential contract award.

•Availability of an existing robot arm for testing and evaluation.

Offline Space Pete

RELEASE : 12-080
 
NASA and CSA Robotic Operations Advance Satellite Servicing

 
WASHINGTON -- NASA's Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) experiment aboard the International Space Station has demonstrated remotely controlled robots and specialized tools can perform precise satellite-servicing tasks in space. The project marks a milestone in the use of the space station as a technology test bed.

"We and our partners are making important technological breakthroughs," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. "As we move ahead toward reaching our exploration goals, we will realize even more benefits from humans and robots working together in space."

The Canadian Space Agency's (CSA) robotic handyman, Dextre, successfully completed the tasks March 7-9 on the space station's external RRM module, designed to demonstrate the tools, technologies and techniques needed to robotically refuel and repair satellites.

"The Hubble servicing missions taught us the importance and value of getting innovative, cutting-edge technologies to orbit quickly to deliver great results," said Frank Cepollina, a veteran leader of five Hubble Space Telescope servicing missions and associate director of the Satellite Servicing Capabilities Office (SSCO) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "The impact of the space station as a useful technology test bed cannot be overstated. Fresh satellite-servicing technologies will be demonstrated in a real space environment within months instead of years. This is huge. It represents real progress in space technology advancement."

Before a satellite leaves the ground, technicians fill its fuel tank through a valve that is sealed, covered and designed never to be accessed again. The RRM experiment demonstrates a remote-controlled robot can remove these barriers and refuel such satellites in space.

Dextre successfully retrieved and inspected RRM tools, released safety launch locks on tool adapters, and used an RRM tool to cut extremely thin satellite lock wire. These operations represent the first use of RRM tools in orbit and Dextre's first participation in a research and development project.

RRM was developed by SSCO and is a joint effort between NASA and CSA. During the next two years, RRM and Dextre will conduct several servicing tasks using RRM tools on satellite parts and interfaces inside and covering the cube-shaped RRM module.

NASA expects the RRM results to reduce the risks associated with satellite servicing. It will encourage future robotic servicing missions by laying the foundation for them. Such future missions could include the repair, refueling and repositioning of orbiting satellites.

"We are especially grateful to CSA for their collaboration on this venture," Cepollina said. "CSA has played a pivotal role in the development of space robotics, from the early days of the space shuttle to the work they are doing with Dextre on space station."

During the three-day RRM Gas Fittings Removal task, the 12-foot (3.7-meter) Dextre performed the most intricate task ever attempted by a space robot: cutting two separate "lock wires" 20 thousandths of an inch (0.5 millimeters) in diameter using the RRM Wire Cutter Tool (WCT). Deftly maneuvered by ground-based mission operators and Dextre, the WCT smoothly slid its hook under the individual wires and severed them with only a few millimeters of clearance. This wire-cutting activity is a prerequisite to removing and servicing various satellite parts during any future in-orbit missions.

RRM operations are scheduled to resume in May 2012 with the completion of the gas fittings removal task. The RRM Refueling task is scheduled for later this summer. NASA and CSA will present RRM results at the Second International Workshop on on-Orbit Servicing, hosted by Goddard May 30-31, 2012.

Dextre and RRM are an example of how robots are changing operations in space. Another is Robonaut 2, or R2, a project of NASA and General Motors. R2, the first human-like robot, was launched into space in 2011 and is a permanent resident of the International Space Station.

For more information about RRM or the On-Orbit Servicing Workshop, visit:
http://ssco.gsfc.nasa.gov

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov


http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2012/mar/HQ_12-080_Robotic_Refueling_Mission.html
NASASpaceflight ISS Editor

Offline savuporo

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This is super cool. Telerobotics in space is actually moving ahead.
Orion - the first and only manned not-too-deep-space craft

Offline Space Pete

Some cool videos of this from the CSA:







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Online AnalogMan

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A couple of status briefing presentations on RRM given at The Second International Workshop on On-Orbit Satellite Servicing held May 30-31 have recently been posted:

Jill McGuire, RRM Program Manager, Satellite Servicing Capabilities Office, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
http://ssco.gsfc.nasa.gov/workshop_2012/McGuire_final_presentation_2012_workshop.pdf

P. Andrew Keenan, Systems Engineer, Canadian Space Agency
http://ssco.gsfc.nasa.gov/workshop_2012/Keenan_final_presentation_2012_workshop.pdf

Offline Space Pete

Dextre's Most Dexterous Task: Part 2 of the Robotic Refueling Mission on the ISS

NASASpaceflight ISS Editor

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