NASA Goddard/Jason Budinoff
NASA Goddard/Jason Budinoff
NASA is set to produce its first space cameras to be made entirely from 3D printed parts by the end of September.
Engineered by Jason Budinoff, the cameras are set to be fully functional, 50mm instruments made from optical mounts and tubes all produced exclusively from 3D manufactured components.
Funded by Goddard’s Internal Research and Development program, the project is being developed to show the benefit that telescope and other instrument structures can have from additive manufacturing.
Budinoff is doing this by producing two instruments, one which will utilise CubeSat miniature satellite and also a 350mm dual-channel telescope, much more similar in size to that of a typical space telescope.
Yet the current goal is not about flying them just yet. The process is primarily a ‘pathfinder’ project in which Budinoff intends to see what possibilities 3D printing holds for building instruments for space.
With current manufacturing processes, similar cameras would require between five and 10 times the number of parts that Budinoff is proposing. This includes a key component baffles, used to reduce stray light in telescopes, which can not be made in a single piece using traditional means.
In comparison, Budinoff’s design would involve the fabrication of only four different pieces, each made from powdered aluminium and titanium and would be set for completion in under three months at a fraction of the cost.
If the project proves a success, it bares a particular advantage to scientists working with infrared-sensing instruments. Due to the way these instruments’ materials react to extreme environments, their parts are currently made of different metals which can be both costly and time consuming. With this new approach, by making all of the parts of aluminium, developers could print them as a single structure to increase stability and reduce the number of interfaces.
IRAD technologists are planning to continue experimenting with the possibilities of 3D technology and next year and are expected to work on printing instruments made of Invar alloy, a material capable of supporting stable structures over a range of temperatures.
