Hands-on education for innovative research fields: A cubesat manufactured with rapid protyping technique

The structure of Cubesat that will be presented in the following paper was realized within the activities of Space Robotics Laboratory (SRL) and the V-Lab of the II Faculty of Engineering of Bologna University in collaboration with the Space System group of University of Rome "LA SAPIENZA". The work team that is persecuting the project proposed is composed by PHD, master and bachelor students. Several projects aimed at hands-on education are developed by the SRL including: an observatory for observation and monitoring of space debris and the creation of payloads for sounding rockets and stratospheric balloons, that are part of the ESA education program; together with the realization of the Cubesat depicted in the paper. Cubesat is a cube-shaped nano-satellite with the side of 100 mm. Despite its small size, it has a system for attitude control, a telecommunication system, a camera and a power system. Considering the size and requirements of the various systems, the organization of interior spaces was one of the major issues in the design of the structure for which it was necessary to identify innovative solutions. The Cubesat structure was realized by polymer (ABS - Acrylonitrile - Butadiene - Styrene) with the technique of "rapid prototyping" thanks to equipment provided by the V-Lab of the II Faculty of Engineering of University of Bologna. The Rapid Prototyping technique has several advantages including the quick implementation and low cost. Moreover, for the construction of a small satellite it is very useful the ability to succeed in details, sometimes difficult to achieve with the use of tools machine except with a significant increase in costs. Another important advantage is the ability to use a material with a lower density than the commonly used aluminum alloy. The structure must be able to resist at the stresses due to the launch vibrational and static loads. For this several simulations using a FEM code have been performed during the design phase, moreover a Test-Pod system in aluminum alloy was built and used to perform vibration tests for the qualification to launch with Indian PLSV launcher of the Cubesat prototype. The paper shows the detailed design of the Cubesat with the analysis of solutions to the critical points, the results of numerical simulations and the results of vibration tests carried out for the launch qualify on the Cubesat prototype. Copyright ©2010 by the International Astronautical Federation. All rights reserved.