Joseph Speed Carroll

US Patent:

20150115106, Apr 30, 2015

Filed:

Mar 29, 2014

Appl. No.:

14/229905

Inventors:

Shannon Coffey - Springfield VA, US
Joseph A. Carroll - Chula Vista CA, US
Paul Oppenheimer - Edgewater MD, US
Jordan R. Schlater - Rossburg OH, US
Ivan Galysh - Chantilly VA, US
Eugene Levin - Minnetonka MN, US
Curt Hogan - Napoleon OH, US
Adam Thurn - Washington DC, US

Assignee:

The Government of the US, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy - Washington DC

International Classification:

B64G 1/64
B64G 1/42

US Classification:

2441582

Abstract:

A tethered spacecraft has a first endmass and a second endmass with a telescoping stacer spring and a tether arranged between the endmasses. The spring is coiled around a center rod and initially contained within a housing, the spring being biased to push the first endmass away from the second endmass. The spring housing is affixed to the first endmass, a first end of the spring being affixed to the spring housing, and tether are affixed to spring at one end and to the second endmass at the other end. A pretensioned loop holds the endmasses abuttingly together, and a burnwire release mechanism cuts the loop to deploy the spring. Upon deployment, the spring extends to its full length to form a cylindrical boom, and the endmasses continue to move outward along the spring centerline until stopped by the tether.