A new deployable pantographic lunar habitat

Abstract

Deployable lunar structures have been and are being developed as an appropriate solution to the volumetric limitations of cargo mission flights. A deployable lunar habitat consisting of linear and planar elements connected through simple movable joints is introduced. This new structure is made of some linear units consisting of two types of scissor-like elements (SLE): 1) a modified polar scissor-like element and 2) a closed-loop of angulated scissor-like elements. After conducting theoretical research on lunar habitats, the evaluation criteria of transformable lunar structures are derived and then many new concepts are evaluated. The design considerations of such structures are discussed, and a proper form for these habitat types is selected. An experimental study is run to assess the best deployment strategy for the whole structure. By introducing the dimensional properties of the lunar habitats through physical and digital modeling process per crewmember, the derived alternatives from the previous stage are analyzed and the best transformation strategy that meets the aforementioned considerations is developed. Providing relatively high degrees of protection against environmental hazards through the combination of rigid plates with membrane, this proposed structure reduces the required extravehicular activity (EVA) time for assembly because of its quick and simple deployment mechanism. The folded state of the structure provides a low volume for the integration of subsystems.