The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 26, 2003
Filed:
Jan. 24, 2002
Markus Bauer, Munich, DE;
Gerald Kuntze-Fechner, Waakirchen, DE;
Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH, Donawoerth, DE;
Abstract
A supporting structure for a solar sail of a satellite is formed by support arms which are connected in a swiveling manner with a solar panel through unfolding joints, and a film is stretched between the support arms. A longitudinal connector is arranged parallel to one side edge of the solar panel, which has support arms that are arranged in a joint direction in the plane of the film and form at least one U-shaped supporting structure between which the film of the solar sail can be stretched. Corner connectors are arranged in the interior angle areas between the longitudinal connector and the support arms. This arrangement simplifies known constructions while maintaining the existing functional safety in order to allow for achieving a noticeable weight reduction.