Aec-Able Engineering Co., Inc.

The United States of America as Represented by the United States

Thomas J Harvey

Owen K Garriott

Philip A Jones

A solar power system for use with a space vehicle for achieving extended mission duration is disclosed. The solar power system includes sets of foldable solar panel casings which are unfolded and extended to the starboard and port sides (.+-.Y axis) of the space vehicle. During stowage the laterally offset sets of casings are placed in an overlapping arrangement to reduce the lateral space occupied within the payload bay of the host space vehicle. The casings are further extended away from the space vehicle by extending an extendable boom along the .+-.Y axis. The extendable boom preferably includes a first and second boom section rotatably attached at their inboard end of the support structure. The solar panels contained within the casings are extended in a .+-.Z axis and a hinge is provided between the ends of the boom sections ad the casings such that the deployed panels can rotate about the .+-.Z axis. A pitch drive motor rotates the boom sections about the .+-.Y axis.

Solar powered system for a space vehicle

A bearing system providing redundancy of bearing function. An inner race and an outer race are concentric and axially spaced apart from one another. A bearing set includes a pin of individually rotatable bearing wheels. The wheels are mounted by an intermediate retainer. A selector is provided to restrain either of the races from rotation relative to its respective wheel, thereby providing for selection of which race is to be active in providing relative rotation of the races.

Bearing system with redundancy of races

An adjustment system for a suspension system having the property of providing a zero spring rate response to limited vertical excursions from a reference level, the suspension system including a load suspension spring supported from a load spring anchor. The adjustment system includes a rigid reference element below the suspension spring, bi-directional drive means between the load spring and the load spring anchor, and a probe insertable into an aperture in the reference element. Circuit means are responsive to the location of the probe relative to the reference element, to adjust the elevation of the load spring relative to the reference level and thereby to tend to restore the reference element to the reference level.

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Lompoc, CA, United States of America

Thomas J Harvey