Fluid Line Deployment and Repair for Space Station

by Raymond H. Anderson, McDonnell Douglas Space Systems Co, United States,
Shirley J. Pearson, McDonnell Douglas Space Systems Co, United States,
J. Douglas Drewry, McDonnell Douglas Space Systems Co, United States,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Engineering, Construction, and Operations in Space II

Abstract:

Deployment of the utility system for providing services to the NASA Space Station Freedom provides a unique challenge in design and material technology. The system must be lightweight, reliable, EVA and robotically compatible, and maintainable over the projected life of the station. The system must provide continuous operational environments at various pressures to users within the station. The station will be built largely by IVA-controlled telerobots and EVA crew members. Deployment of the fluid system lines and the electrical power cables must be accomplished using simple, safe techniques which minimize EVA crew time. The system, once in orbit, must be maintainable and easily repaired over its projected life. Fluid line connections and electrical couplings, assembled in the hostile environment of space, must be reliable, easy to inspect, safe to prepare, and require a minimum of preparation and tooling. On-orbit deployment of this system by a flexible metal tray meets these requirements.

Subject Headings: Space stations | Cables | Electrical systems | Utilities | Space exploration | System reliability | Fluid flow

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