On Nov. 12-13, BYU students presented their inflatable robot at NASA's 2024 Breakthrough, Innovative and Game-changing Idea Challenge, or BIG Idea Challenge, in the Inflatable Systems for Lunar Operations division in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The challenge invited college teams to present innovative solutions for aerospace engineering problems to NASA and industry experts each year.
Participating college teams designed and developed inflatable technologies, structures and systems with low weight, size and power for lunar operations, according to NASA's website.
The BYU team's proposal — an inflatable robot for solar panels that can change shape and move for sunlight — made it to the finals with five other institutions: Arizona State University, University of Maryland, University of Michigan, California Institute of Technology and Northwestern University.
"We are very grateful to the people at NASA and the people at BIG Idea council for giving us the funding to achieve what we have done," James Wade, the BYU team lead, said.
This competition provided up to $150,000 to each final team for their projects.
BYU's team of undergraduates, graduates and Ph.D. students in mechanical engineering developed Nathan Usevitch's Ph.D. work to build a "versatile" inflatable robot with the fund.
The BYU team designed the robot with assembled triangular trusses of inflated tubes, joints and rollers in the corners, making it possible to create any structure with triangular shapes.
The simulator software that students designed helps communicate and control the rollers to adjust their size and shape to complete their tasks.
The team designed mechanical parts and tested materials to overcome the harsh environmental conditions of the moon.
Building a low-weight inflatable robot
Chris Paul, co-leader of the BYU team, explained that looking for ways to send lighter mass is becoming a popular idea. Sending materials into space is currently expensive, starting from multiple thousands of dollars for each kilogram.
BYU's inflatable robot makes can be deflated and stored at a small size when not in use, Paul said. Astronauts can inflate, lift and assemble the robot for its purpose with less effort, unlike hard robotics.
Although inflatable materials promise lightness, they have drawbacks due to harsh environmental challenges, he said.
"When the first astronauts went to the moon, the outer layer of their space suits only lasted for 22 hours because of the dust charged by the sun," Paul said.
Challenging lunar environment
Ashleigh Cerven, a BYU sophomore, said she helped the team by exploring inflatable tube types and conducting extensive testing on various aspects of the lunar environment.
The students tested the robot by exposing it to UV light and extreme temperatures, sandblasting and operating it in an electrostatic vacuum chamber to see if it could withstand lunar conditions.
Paul explained that the students had to consider abrasive dust, extensive UV exposure, electrostatic charges and no air with extreme temperature changes while building this robot.
Testing the materials in the lab provided a cool experience of trying "to think outside the box and test materials for survival," Cerven said.
The team also designed spherical joints that mitigate lunar dust interference. This allows it to preserve its function in the lunar environment and allows flexible and independent movement.
Programming motion-simulating software
Isaac Weaver, a graduate student in mechanical engineering, said he participated in programming kinematic simulation software to predict its movement and shape, and to send radio signals to the rollers.
"This robot is made up of a bunch of triangles that depend on how each other moves," Weaver said.
The active robotic rollers with the truss move the tube back and forth, changing the truss shape.
The robotic parts needed consideration in each direction and velocity to gain their desired accurate position, especially for the solar panel in direct sunlight, Weaver said.
Weaver also explained that the software and robot's radio signals follow one parent and two children's communication: one roller receives a signal, and the parent roller sends the signal to the other two rollers, spreading signals among the robotic parts.
Expanding application
The BYU team's reconfigurable truss robot applies not only to solar panel structures but also to cranes and habitat structures that are "basically any shape that you can create with triangles," Paul said.
The structural uniqueness of the robot makes it a useful creation.
"It is a very versatile robot, so I'd love to see the very different possibilities that we can use it for," Cerven said.
Participating in this funded competition allowed the team to have the concentrated goal of achieving significant progress.
"That is really one of the most exciting parts about being an engineer," Wade said. "All of us were very blessed to see the success that cooperation can bring as well — not only just success in terms of the final product, but also trust and team building."
