N

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Project Overview

Why a Lunar Flying Vehicle (LFV)?

Through the Constellation Program, NASA plans to establish a permanent

lunar base near the south pole. This base will require the development of a transportation infrastructure for the efficient travel, research, and

exploration of the Moon’s surface.

An LFV can:

• Provide access to sites inaccessible with a rover (e.g. ,crater floors, mountain tops, rilles)

• Travel tens of kilometers in minutes as opposed to hours

• Utilize propellants available on site• Residual propellants from Altair lander (Liquid Oxygen (LOX), Liquid

Hydrogen (LH2))• In situ propellant production (ice or regolith)

• Launch rescue missions to recover a stranded rover crew

Lunar craters are objects of great scientific interest. Since craters are formed by impacts from bodies, such as meteoroids and comets, these

craters often contain deposits of materials that would not be normally

found in the lunar regolith. Of particular interest are deposits of hydrogen, which may indicate the presence of ice.

The graphic above depicts the planned

Constellation lunar outpost and nearby craters.

*Surface Architecture Reference Document (SARD). Ver. 3.4. 2008. p 13.

Alshain utilizes planned Constellation architecture without

modification for its delivery to the lunar surface.

Delivery Procedure:

• Arrives on cargo Altair mission in stowed configuration

(landing gear unattached)

• Unloaded from Altair using Tri-ATHLETE

• Lunar Surface Manipulator System (LSMS) suspends Alshain by its roll cage

• An EVA attaches the landing gear via bolt connections

• Alshain is fueled via in situ production facilities or by Altair’s residual propellant

Far Right: Image of an Altair lander with

attached Tri-ATHLETE for unloading cargo.

Right: LSMS crane unloading payload from

an Altair lander

Deployment

550680

1310

(1540 pulse)With 30% Margin

4205201010

(1180 pulse)Total Power

240--Life Support

77130Vehicle Lighting

202020Status Monitoring

255075Interface Box

50125125S/Ka Band Equipment

2550100Flight Computers

-3045IMU

505050WLAN

Equipment In Flight (W) Landed (W) 24-hour (W)

LIDAR 66 - -

Radar 10 - -

Star Tracker - 20 (10 min) -

Video Cameras 30 - -

Mass Data Storage 65 65 -

FPGAs/DSP 75 75 -

Propulsion Valves 170 (pulse) - -

Control Panels 50 50 -

(www.nasa.gov/pdf/203096main_TEC%20Splinter-Thermal%20control.pdf)

Main sources of heat flux:

• Solar radiation• Planetary reflection/radiation

• Power consumption• Astronauts

Onboard Alshian there are two 2 m2

optical solar reflectors (OSR) to account for

heat buildup in the avionics equipment and thermal louvers for heat loss during the

worst-case cold scenario. To protect the

astronauts, the seats are covered with white Aeroglaze A276 paint. There is also a layer

of multi-layered insulation (MLI) on each of the propellant tanks to control boil-off rates.

OSRhttp://www.qioptiqspace.com/Data/Images/space1.jpg

Thermal Louvershttp://www.nec.co.jp/aad/space/s3/image/image32.gif

Thermal System

Mechanical PR

Powered PR

RCS Valves

Main Engine Valves

RCS X 20

Pressure Tanks

LOX LOX LH2LH2

Main Engine

* All valves and non-mechanical pressure regulators are triply redundant

Fill Drain Valve

Power, Propulsion, and Thermal

Propulsion System

LOXLH2 Fuel Cell 1

Fuel Cell 2

LiFePo4

CFx

PMAD Powered Components

Propulsion system consists of:

• 4 He Pressure Tanks

• 2 LOX Tanks

• 3 LH2 Tanks

• 1 40 kN Main Engine

• 20 RCS Thrusters80 cm

100 cm

The RCS consists of:

• Eight 450 N thrusters in the xy plane

• Eight 1150 N thrusters in ± z direction

• Four 1150 N thrusters in - z direction

The power system uses two proton exchange member (PEM) fuel cells, a set of Lithium Ion Phosphate batteries, and a

set of Lithium/Carbon Monoflouride non-rechargeable batteries.

The power produced by these systems is managed by a power management and distribution (PMAD) unit, which distributes the

power amongst the avionics and other control systems. Power is provided for all the components listed in the power budget

below.

Power System

Hardware Ingress/Egress

Payload Elevator

Testing with a suited subject:

• Board vehicle and occupy the aft crew station• Manipulate control panels

• Occupy the forward crew station• Turn around and egress from vehicle

Incapacitated AstronautA dummy was constructed to mimic the weight distribution of an EVA suited 95th percentile American male in 1/6th Earth gravity for the purpose

of testing incapacitated astronaut rescue operations. The suited subject

was able to statically support the weight of the astronaut dummy for a period of ten seconds.

Elevator testing:

• Load elevator with mock payload

• Raise elevator to platform height

• Lower elevator to

ground

• Unload elevator

x

y

Parabolic Dishes

Propellant Tanks

Landing Gear

Pressurant Tanks

Cargo Elevator

FlightComputers

(4)

Sensors

Comm terminal rangingLRS rangingIMUStar TrackerLIDAR

Actuators

main enginesRCS

Antennas

HGA Crew Interface

Controls

HUD

Radar

LGA

Status

Four flight computers operate in parallel to ensure robustness to computer failures. These computers take

commands from the crew interface or the communications

system, process data from the navigational sensors, and issue the appropriate commands to the actuators.

acc/decelerating and pitchingacc/decelerating

coastingpropulsive glide

The vehicle follows a modified ballistic trajectory, transitioning into a propulsive glide for the final approach

and landing. Total time of flight for a 57km hop is 6

minutes.

Navigation

Initial position and attitude fixes are acquired via ranging to Lunar Relay

Satellites (LRS) and star trackers respectively. Inertial navigation allows

40 meter landing accuracy for a 57 km

hop.

Guidance Modes

• Autonomous: The flight computers manage all aspects of flight to bring the

vehicle to a preprogrammed target

location. A LIDAR scan is conducted for hazard avoidance.

• Direct Control: Automatic control loops maintain pilot-specified rates in

translation and rotation.

• Teleoperation: The vehicle flies

autonomously until the final approach, at which point the LIDAR scan is

transmitted to a remote pilot for landing point designation.

LRS LFVS-band

WLAN

Ka-band

Ka-band

WLAN

TDRSS

TDRSS

DSN

DSN

S-band

Ka-band

Outpost

S-band

MCC

High gain and omnidirectional systems are used on Ka and S bands to provide communication. Wireless LAN (WLAN) is used for short-range local applications. Omnidirectional S-band is used for voice, sensor, tracking, telemetry, and command data during flight. The high-gain parabolic dishes are used for high data rate applications such as video.

Link Budgets

Ka-band LRS

(26 GHz)

S-band LRS

(2.2 GHz)

Ka-band DTE

(26 GHz)

S-band DTE

(2.2 GHz)

Tx Gain 42 dB 2.0 dB 42 dB 2.0 dB

Tx Power 1.2 W 26 W 3.7 W 7 W

Rx Gain 46 dB 25 dB 77 dB 55 dB

Eb/No

required 9.4 dB 9.4 dB 13.5 dB 3.5 dB

Link margin of 6 dB for all communications modes.

Avionics

Nominal Flight Plan Guidance, Navigation, and Control

Communications

Alshain (Arabic for “falcon”) is a two-person lunar flying vehicle named for a

star in the same constellation as Altair.

• Range: 57 km each way (round trip)

240 km (one way)

• Inert mass: 1130 kg

• Propellant mass: 940 kg

• Crew survival reliability: 99.6%

• Estimated Cost: 1 billion dollars for

development and production of two

vehicles

Note: All dimensions are in meters Note: All dimensions are in meters

1.333.24

1.10

1.10

Project AlshainA Lunar Flying Vehicle for Rapid Universal

Surface Access

3.10

2.04

7.91

6.90

Loads, Structures, and Mechanisms

Support Base

The support base is comprised of six I-Beams and two pairs

of tubular crossbeams. The I-Beams allow for a low mass method of supporting the structure against moments and

other forces created during flight and landing. The support base sits just under the feet of the crew and is directly

connected to all of the major components.

The engine support is comprised of four tubular beams

connected to the support base. The engine must be

supported against its own weight during Earth launch and landing, as well as when it is fired on the Moon.

The tank support is comprised of thirty six tubular beams of

nine different sizes. The fuel tanks are empty during Earth launch, but on the Moon they must be supported with up to

400kg each. The pressurant tanks are full during Earth

launch, therefore their full weight must be supported at all times.

The landing gear are supported by copper beryllium torsional

springs at the support base and have copper beryllium linear springs along the footpads. Each leg is designed to support

the vehicle in a one leg landing scenario without tipping. The

landing gear is also equipped with two tubular side beams to support against twisting.

The roll cage consists of four curved tubular beams and six

straight tubular beams. The roll cage is designed to keep all critical components safe in the event of a roll over. A 30cm

buffer was included in order to provide protection from

surface hazards, while allowing for ingress/egress of the crew.

Engine Support Tank Support

Landing Gear Roll Cage

Outreach

Reference: http://www.aiaa-baltimore.org/photos/2009/PaperAirplaneChallenge

Volunteered as judges and assistants at the Baltimore Museum of Industry’s Maryland

Engineering Challenges.

• Paper Airplane Competition (Grades 1-5)

• Hovercraft Competition (Grades 6-8)• Cargo Airplane Competition (Grades 9-12)

Reference: http://www.aiaa-baltimore.org/photos/2009/PaperAirplaneChallenge

Crew Systems

Contingency Procedures•Accommodates two crew members in stadium seating

•Personal Life Support System

(PLSS) secures into latches on the PLSS Support Bars

• Astronauts’ boots are restrained at

the heel to prevent feet from kicking upward

• Restraint engagement confirmation

lights located on control panels

• Restraint release switches are located within easy reach of the crew

Lighting Control PanelsThe forward crew member is the nominal

pilot because of superior sight lines. The aft crew member is also provided a set of

controls for contingency operations

• 2 joysticks for manual control

• Physical warning lights

• Controller pad for mission critical controls

• Heads-Up Display (HUD)

• Voice commands in helmet

Four 20 watt halogen lamps illuminate:

• Crew flight control area

• Crew ingress/egress area• Cargo elevator

Four 50 watt halogen lamps illuminate the area surrounding the vehicle

24 Hour Life Support Requirements (per crew member)

•Breathing oxygen0.84 kg of O2 per day

•Carbon dioxide scrubbing1.00 kg of CO2 per day

•Cooling water re-supply5.22 kg of water for every 8 hours

15.7 kg replacement water needed for 24 hours

•Drinking water re-supply1.62 kg of drinking water per day

•120 W needed to power EVA suit

Project Alshain team members participated in University of Maryland

Engineering Open Houses:• Presented Alshain concept to prospective engineering students

• Answered questions about the engineering program and experiences at UMD

Roll Cage

Contingency Life Support Storage

Engine Accommodation

Control Panels

Seating and Restraints

The center of gravity envelope, pictured in green, displays the

worst case X and Z direction CG positions for the vehicle. The Y direction CG shift is negligible in comparison to the X and Z

shifts.

Center of Gravity Envelope

x

z

Amy Ross, Lunar Rover Vehicle Mockup Advanced Space Suit Ingress/Egress Test

Boot Platforms

PLSS Support BarsSeating Platforms

General Public

K-12Participated in the University of Maryland’s

annual Maryland Day:

• Presented Alshain concept and hardware• Lead tours of the Space System Lab’s

Minimal Functional Habitat Mock-up

• Assisted visitors with the use of the Space System Lab’s rover and shuttle computer

simulations

Campus198 hours, 100% participation