Tetrahedral Robotics for Space Exploration

A reconfigurable space filling robotic architecture has a wide range of possible applications. One of the more intriguing possibilities is mobility in very irregular and otherwise impassable terrain. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is developing the third generation of its addressable reconfigurable technology (ART) tetrahedral robotics architecture. An ART-based variable geometry truss consisting of 12 tetrahedral elements made from 26 smart struts on a wireless network has been developed. The primary goal of this development is the demonstration of a new kind of robotic mobility that can provide access and articulation that complement existing capabilities. An initial set of gaits and other behaviors are being tested, and accommodations for payloads such as sensor and telemetry packages are being studied. Herein, we describe our experience with the ART tetrahedral robotics architecture and the improvements implemented in the third generation of this technology. Applications of these robots to space exploration and the tradeoffs involved with this architecture will be discussed.     

不同矢量偏角下二元喷管内流特性的数值研究

应用多重网格MacCormack显式格式对不同矢量角下二元喷管的内部流动进行了模拟分析。计算时, 在细网格上采用了雷诺平均N-S方程与k-ε湍流模型方程;在粗网格上则采用Euler方程。数值计算给出了较清晰的流谱, 壁面压力分布的计算也与实验结果相吻合。通过计算结果分析了矢量喷管几何参数对流场的影响, 并对矢量喷管的推力特性进行了数值研究。