Tenders Are Invited For Development Of On-Orbit Manufacturing Process For Large Antenna Reflector - Expro Plus

Tenders are invited for Development of on-Orbit Manufacturing Process for Large Antenna Reflector - Expro plus To select, develop and demonstrate on a breadboard a process relevant for on-orbit manufacturingof large antenna reflectors.DescriptionThe size of the Telecommunication satellites is limited by the dimensions of the launcher fairings.This applies to components of the satellites where a larger size results in increased performance and capability of the system. Larger solar arrays result in more power available for a given platform and increased payload capability. Larger antenna reflectors lead to a smaller emitted beam and therefore higher gain, higher data throughput and the ability to divide the available power between an increased number of smaller beams. Current solutions for large reflectors rely on deployablesystems, which have highly complex manufacturing and testing routes, which result in long lead times and high cost. The ability to manufacture antenna reflectors and booms on orbit allows to alleviate the limitation of the fairing size and the impact of the launch vibrations, thereby enabling very large size antennae and improved system performance. Manufacturing and assemblyprocesses for on-orbit manufacturing have been proposed and tested on ground by several actors,including in Europe. The first in orbit demonstration missions for in-situ manufacturing and assemblyof spacecraft components are scheduled in the U.S. before 2025.This activity proposes to select, develop and demonstrate a process relevant to future on-orbitmanufacturing of large antenna reflectors. The process to be developed could be an on-orbit manufacturing technique,to produce antenna structural components (e.g. antenna frame structural beam, boom, reflective surface elements) or an on-orbit assembly technique, to join structural components together (e.g. joining of reflector membrane on the antenna structure frame). The emphasis will be put on continuous or semi-continuous processes (over batch processes). This, inorder to address antenna concepts involving large structural elements (e.g. large mesh or trussstructure), as opposed to concepts relying on assembly of a high number of small constitutive elements, which have been explored in previous activities.The activity encompasses the following tasks:- Reviewof use cases for very large antenna reflectors- Review of existing and potential solutions for on-orbit manufacturing and assemblyof large antenna reflector structural elements (composites, polymers, metals, ceramics)- Definition of requirements for the manufacturing method- Trade-off and selection of manufacturing method to be developed- Manufacturing and characterization of small-scalespecimens- Design and manufacturing of a breadboard and demonstration of elemental performance requirements- Development plan towards on-orbit demonstration.Read more Tender Link : https://esastar-publication-ext.sso.esa.int/ESATenderActions/filter/open

Refer document

FileName	File Description
Global Tender Document	Tender Notice