Mechanical Engineering
Year
2021

CubeSats is the number one way for innovation in space research. This can be attributed to their significantly lower costs relative to conventional satellites and greater accessibility to space via a rideshare program. The main constraint, however, is the low average power generation due to their small size, meaning they have limited surface area on their external walls for solar cell assembly. Our solution aims to tackle that problem by introducing an origami-inspired solar deployment method which utilizes shape memory alloys as actuators. Our proposed unfolding design can achieve a 280% increase in power generation for a 3U CubeSat, thus expanding the range of capabilities of its in-board electronics, experimental apparatus, and other useful cargo activities.

Image Gallery
Solar Memory Solar Memory Solar Memory Solar Memory Solar Memory

Students

Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering