Analysis and Development of a Robotic Arm for Space Applications

The present paper focuses on the design of a robotic arm for space applications, virtually prototyped using software such as SOLIDWORKS, MATLAB, and SIMSCAPE. More than sixty years have passed since the first space launch in orbit around the Earth. Since then, numerous missions have been conducted in the meantime, making space launches way more accessible. Nonetheless, if launching satellites into space is now something so approachable, not much has been done to deliver it back. As a result, space pollution has become a problem. Therefore, it is essential to try to reduce the risk of collision and loss of satellites. Moreover, it is fundamental to equip the new satellite with a self-destruct system to prevent the occurrence of the so-called “Kessler Syndrome” scenario. This paper illustrates and analyses the design phases, the choice of the kinematics, the static verification, and the modal analysis in different setups of a robotic arm attached to a minisatellite. For this purpose, the propulsion system was carefully chosen, whereas control systems for the arm movement were developed and a feedback controller was chosen. The arm under study was designed to fit a minisatellite, be resistant during orbit, and be able to stabilize the attitude of the robot in orbit. The paper presents the analysis of the results of the virtual prototyping process developed in this work by using a multibody approach.