The downsizing of a free-flying space robot

Abstract

Robotic technologies have been long-serving in space, and are still an active and ever-growing field of research. Satellite mounted manipulators allow more ambitious tasks to be carried out in a safer and more timely manner, by limiting the need for astronaut intervention during task execution. Downsizing these free-flying space robots will expand their potential by increasing their versatility, allowing task sharing between multiple systems, as well as further lowering mission costs and timescales. Limited research has been done in assessing the practical challenges involved in downsizing a space robot and its consequences on overall performance. This paper presents a system level analysis into deciding the optimum dimensions for a manipulator mounted on a small free-flying spacecraft. Simulation results show the effect of downsizing on the efficiency of the manipulator and the overall system.