充气空间栖息地的创新传感器
努力将LUNA光纤传感器变为太空
Luna正在与NASA，Sierra Nevada Corporation（SNC）和ILC Dover合作的研究项目，以开发采用我们创新的高清光纤传感（HD-FOS）的充气空间栖息地的结构健康监测方法。该行业合作伙伴团队是将这些充气结构部署到轨道中的主要候选人，作为美国宇航局的一部分月亮到火星探索活动计划，一个美国宇航局主导的倡议，寻求将人类更深入到太空中，从而引发了新发现的知识和机遇。
受到了激励的月亮到火星探索活动, Luna hopes that the results of this research will reveal its sensors as suitable instruments for the inflatable space habitats. According to John Ohanian, Luna’s principal investigator on the project, our sensors might address a variety of applications as part of this initiative. He explains, “One of the first places our technology could fit in is on the Lunar Gateway (see Figure 1) - a depot that will be orbiting the moon and a staging point for going to Mars. A habitation module in the gateway could be an inflatable habitat. Inflatables could also be used in transit to Mars or on the surface of the Moon or Mars.” Inflatable habitats are highly versatile and provide the most living space per unit weight compared to all other approaches in consideration--though they also have their own set of challenges.
充气栖息地对太空旅行有利，因为它们减轻了重量和成本限制;然而，很难能够可靠地监测其结构健康，这对宇航员安全至关重要。俄亥俄解释说：“在高度柔性的材料中将传感器置于非常挑战性，因为你不能使用典型的测量菌株方式。传统上，您将应变计粘在刚性结构上，但这对这些软鳃结构不起作用，这是由柔性织带制成的，使得收集有意义的数据来挑战，以便提前预期材料的潜在失败。“
这些结构容易出现两个主要有害风险：蠕变和微象性的影响。蠕变是指长时间的应变生长，而微型物体是小岩石，可以削弱或穿刺充气空间栖息地中使用的织物。这两个挑战都会危及宇航员的生命。当失败的赌注很高时，需要更大程度的确定性。
Cementing Luna’s reputation as a thought-leader for innovative design approaches, the Luna team has discovered a solution to this SHM obstacle: by embedding our sensors into the flexible webbing itself, we eliminate the need for external sensor gages (see Figure 2). “As far as embedded sensors go, we come up with all sorts of innovative approaches,” says Ohanian. “At a high-level our sensing technology has addressed the two highest risk modes for inflatable space habitats: creep and micrometeoroid impacts.” Ohanian recently presented a technical paper on this topic at ASCEND 2020, a space-focused conference and symposium hosted by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).
通过将传感器嵌入到充气空间栖息地的织带中，Luna已经成功地提供了前所未有的数据质量，用于实时，长期监测软卓结构。随着技术在一系列实验室损伤试验中的表现的成功，蠕变试验和模拟微象性影响，Luna很兴奋，使这一创新发现成为一个新的水平。在地面测试期间，正在进行NASA提示点项目以在1/3级更现实的结构中测试传感器。如果我们的传感器被证明是成功的，它们可以包含在未来的空间使命栖息地结构，如月球网关，甚至是Mars任务的过境和轨道栖息地。