Altius Space Machines is a subsidiary company of Voyager Space Holdings (Jan 2020), based in Broomfield, CO dedicated to engineering the future in Aerospace. Core Capabilities

Ideation, Conceptual Design, and Research and Development, Flight Hardware Manufacturing
System and Architecture Level Ideation and Design
Electropermanent Magnet (EPM)
Electrical/Mechanical/Robotics Systems
Cryogenic Fluid Systems
Space Environmental Testing Lab (TVAC, Vibe, HALT/HASS)

History

2010–2012

In 2010, Altius Space Machines, with support from the

SRI International SRI International (SRI) is an American nonprofit organization, nonprofit scientific research, scientific research institute and organization headquartered in Menlo Park, California. The trustees of Stanford University established SRI in 1946 as ...

invented the "Sticky Boom" Electroadhesive Boom-Rendezvous system to solve several of the key challenges associated with rendezvous and capture of the Orbiting Sample Canister (OSC) for a Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission. This system significantly improves on previously proposed sample canister capture systems, by providing the following key features:

High inherent safety — Contact and capture event takes place at a significant distance from the orbiter
Electromechanical steering for the last few meters of the OS rendezvous and capture process – Reduces rendezvous propellant consumption
High tolerance for positioning and velocity errors between orbiter and target – Reduces requirements for precision control of orbiter during the capture maneuver.
Very low mass and volume compared to other solutions
The same system can capture the OS and transfer it to an Earth Entry Vehicle using the same hardware.
Provides a simple means of reliable, non-mechanical contact and proximity detection.
Low-risk solution—booms are based on systems with extensive flight experience, the capture device has seen extensive testing in a terrestrial environment as well as successful preliminary microgravity dynamic testing aboard a parabolic aircraft.
Small enough for affordable near-term testing in LEO using CubeSat or other rideshare opportunities.

In July 2011, Altius Space Machines won first place in the 2011

NewSpace Business Plan Competition Private spaceflight is spaceflight or the development of spaceflight technology that is conducted and paid for by an entity other than a government agency. In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agencies of the Soviet Un ...

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo Count ...

, sponsored by the

Space Frontier Foundation The Space Frontier Foundation is an American space advocacy nonprofit corporation organized to promote the interests of increased involvement of the private sector, in collaboration with government, in the exploration and development of space. ...

. Altius won a contract with

DARPA The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. Originally known as the Ad ...

in July 2012 to build a composite extensible

robotic Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch of computer science and engineering. Robotics involves design, construction, operation, and use of robots. The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans. Robotics integrate ...

boom

arm In human anatomy, the arm refers to the upper limb in common usage, although academically the term specifically means the upper arm between the glenohumeral joint (shoulder joint) and the elbow joint. The distal part of the upper limb between t ...

for the

DARPA Phoenix The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. Originally known as the Ad ...

project. They also began work in 2012 developing Gecko-adhesive grippers, as part of work to build a ''Gecko Gripper Touch-to-Grasp tool'' that incorporated

JPL The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center in the City of La Cañada Flintridge, California, United States. Founded in the 1930s by Caltech researchers, JPL is owned by NASA a ...

’s "synthetic Gecko adhesive technology that mimics the ability of Gecko lizards to adhere to walls." The work leveraged previous work done by Altius on uncooperative capture mechanisms using electroadhesion.

2013–2015

In 2014, Altius began work on a MagnetoShell

aerocapture Aerocapture is an orbital transfer maneuver in which a spacecraft uses aerodynamic drag force from a single pass through a planetary atmosphere to decelerate and achieve orbit insertion. Aerocapture uses a planet's or moon's atmosphere to accom ...

and

aerobraking Aerobraking is a spaceflight maneuver that reduces the high point of an elliptical orbit ( apoapsis) by flying the vehicle through the atmosphere at the low point of the orbit ( periapsis). The resulting drag slows the spacecraft. Aerobraking ...

technology for

cubesat A CubeSat is a class of miniaturized satellite based around a form factor consisting of cubes. CubeSats have a mass of no more than per unit, and often use commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components for their electronics and structure. CubeSat ...

s. Called ''MIDAS'', Multi-Purpose Interplanetary Deployable Aerocapture System, the 6U CubeSats will be designed to be used on an interplanetary mission such as to Mars, Venus, or Jupiter's moon Europa Other work includes the "Kraken Asteroid Boulder Retrieval System." In late 2014, Altius expects to test prototypes of grasping arms and non-force-closure

grip Grip(s) or The Grip may refer to: Common uses * Grip (job), a job in the film industry * Grip strength, a measure of hand strength Music * Grip (percussion), a method for holding a drum stick or mallet * ''The Grip'', a 1977 album by Arthur Bl ...

per concepts for capturing a

boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...

off the surface of an

asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet of the Solar System#Inner solar system, inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic o ...

. The study is funded by NASA as part of their broader

Asteroid Redirect Mission The Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM), also known as the Asteroid Retrieval and Utilization (ARU) mission and the Asteroid Initiative, was a space mission proposed by NASA in 2013; the mission was later cancelled. The Asteroid Retrieval Roboti ...

(ARM) project and is intended to mature system concepts and key technologies while assessing the feasibility of potential commercial partnerships for ARM. In 2015 Altius won a contract to build lightweight robotic manipulators, that utilize rollable composite STEM booms to provide a prismatic extension/retraction DOF, as robot arms for Assistive Free-Flyers (AFFs) on the International Space Station. These Low-Inertia STEM Arm (LISA) manipulators can provide comparable or better manipulation capabilities to AFFs than traditional robotic manipulators, but with less mass, lower inertia, better stowability, and the ability to reach into hard-to-access locations.:

2016–2018

2019-Present

Product Line

DogTag™

The DogTag™ is a universal grapple fixture that supports a wide variety of capture methods. :
Patent number: US 2019/0241286A1

Mechanical Grasping
Snare Capture
Magnetic Capture
Gecko Adhesion
Electrostatic Adhesion
Chemical Adhesion
Harpoon Capture

Hundreds of units are currently in orbit with hundreds more scheduled to be launched fully space-qualified to stringent Airbus-OneWeb Satellites requirements
OneWeb YouTube Video

Electropermanent Magnets (EPMs)

An electropermanent magnets (EPM) Is an Altius Space Machines patented technology, which offer numerous benefits over existing mechanical or magnetic interfaces. EPMs are solid-state switchable magnets, with no moving parts and can be put into an unlimited number of form factors
Patent number: 10984936

Combines the best characteristics of both varieties to provide a desired magnetic field that:

Very strong grip – 500 kPa already demonstrated (72.5 psi), theoretically capable of up to 1 MPa (145 psi)
No power to maintain state, only to change state
Solid-state, no moving parts
Simple command and control
Available in dual-mode (Distance Attraction/Surface Grip/Off) or single-mode (On/Off)
Magnetic field is tightly constrained and does not create any significant magnetic flux beyond the passive-interface

EPMs combine the tunability of electromagnets with the stability of permanent magnets to produce a uniquely capable magnetic latch with no moving parts

Dual-Mode EPM

Altius is currently working to develop the Dual-Mode EPM. This EPM will have a "Long-Range Mode" (LRM) and a "Short-Range Mode" (SRM). The LRM will exert meaningful force at a distance of 5 cm, exert slight force at 10–20 cm, and Grip force at contact sufficient to prevent "bouncing off". SRM achieves grip pressure = 200 kPA
Patent Pending: 20210210267

EPM Based Products

Altius has developed many products that contain EPM Technology and continues to invent new and innovative products to meet the needs of On-Orbit servicing.

= MagTag™

= Altius has developed a MagTag Modular Interface which allows for a new paradigm in spacecraft design, construction, and servicing: an EPM latched electrical and/or fluid connection interface.

Robust: EPMs offer a strong (1 kN) magnetic connection with no moving parts
Lightweight & Low-profile: <500g total, each interface half can fit within a 10 x 10 x 5 cm envelope
Latching: EPMs only require power (<20J) to change gripping states from on-to-off and will maintain the latch without active power
Highly-Capable: The baseline design supports 600W of transferred power at 28V, and over 1Gbit/s data transfer rates
Launch Lock Capable: MagTags are strong enough to support multi-kg payloads during launch
Scalable: Arrays of MagTags on a pallet can support a variety of modules and sub-modules for installation

= Magnetic Tool Changer

Altius' Magnetic Tool Changer uses a solid-state switchable EPM magnetic latch and acts as a robotic end-effector. The robotic side connects to a tool side that can have a number of different tools (robotic or traditional). If the tool side is robotic, the tool changer can provide power and data to the tool and use it as if it were hard-wired.

Dust-Tolerant Hermetic Design: Designed without any exposed moving electrical or mechanical parts on either side of the interface.
High Reliability: Has no moving parts, dramatically increasing the reliability over traditional mechanical tool changers.
Low Actuation Power: Solid-state switchable magnet design has low peak power consumption (<5W if desired), only consuming power when the magnet is switching from on to off.
Lightweight/Compact: By eliminating the need for complex mechanical latching systems, the proposed tool changer can be dramatically lighter than traditional mechanical tool changers.
Tight Reach Capability: The compact EPM tool changer enables the insertion of sampling tools or sensors into much tighter geometric areas than would be possible with a turret or mechanical tool changer design.
Power and Data Transfer: The Tool Changer is capable of wireless power (inductive) and data transfer >100 watts and up to 870 Mbit/s. Data is transferred usin
Keyssa
technology.

= In-Space Docking & Assembly

= ESCHER (example)

Altius was selected under NASA's SBIR to develop the Experimental Swarm Construction Hardware EPM based Robotic interface (ESCHER) for NASA's In-Space Assembly (ISA) initiative of modular satellites and space facilities. NASA Applications

In Space Assembly (ISA) of modular satellites and space facilities
Rapid assembly/disassembly structures enabling multi-robot missions for collaborative planetary exploration
Universal interface for swarm assemble-able orbital and planetary structures

Terrestrial Applications

Payload quick swap interface for hosted and replaceable payloads
UAV interface for docking, recharging, and payload manipulation.
Universal interface for robotic assembly/disassembly terrestrial structures in remote, harsh environments

= Cryogenic Fluid Connector for In-Space Refueling

Features:

Designed to re-use existing match-plate valve stems on launch vehicles
Zero mating force connection using solid-state electro-permanent magnets (EPMs)
Mating and blowoff forces reacted locally by a dedicated draw-down mechanism consisting of a linear servo array
Dual poppet for dry disconnect
Self aligning

Specifications:

Avg. Helium Leak Rate @ 50psi: 0.00001 cc/sec
Proof tested to 100psi hydrostatically
Flow coefficient (water): 4.9-5.3
Magnetic latch tested up to 1000N (force sensor limit)
Maximum latching force of 2135 N

Cryo-Coupler v2

Space-Rated Propellant Transfer Valve (PTV)

Altius has developed an Electromechanically driven propellant transfer valve for the transfer of fluid or gas. Contains a paired Active and Passive Assembly for a tolerant fluid coupling. *Active Assembly mass: <1.2 kg *Passive Assembly mass: <0.3 kg *MAWP: 725 PSI *Total Stroke: 1.75" *Tolerant of mechanical misalignment and thermal gradients

References

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