THREE-DIMENSIONAL MULTI-SHELL INSULATION
First Claim
1. An additively manufactured three-dimensional multi-shell insulation for insulating at least one portion of a spacecraft, the insulation comprising:
- a plurality of shell layers of progressively increasing size that are nested together and formed as a unitary insulation member that is configured to at least partially surround the at least one portion of the spacecraft;
each of the plurality of shell layers having layer edge portions on opposite sides of said each of the plurality of shell layers, and said each of the plurality of shell layers having a layer major portion extending between the layer edge portions;
the respective layer major portions of each of the plurality of shell layers having at least one layer major surface that is configured to be spaced apart from an opposing layer major surface of an adjacent shell layer when in use in a low-gravity and/or low-pressure environment for minimizing thermal conduction between the shell layers; and
the respective layer major portions of the respective adjacent shell layers of the plurality of shell layers have one or more restraints that are unitary with, and integrally formed between, the respective adjacent shell layers;
wherein the respective one or more restraints of the respective adjacent shell layers are configured to allow the respective adjacent shell layers to be displaceable relative to each other up to a prescribed amount, and are configured to restrict the relative displacement between the respective adjacent shell layers beyond the prescribed amount.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A three-dimensional multi-shell insulation configured to conform to the shape of a spacecraft component to be insulated. The insulation may have a plurality of nested shell layers that are displaceable relative to each other for providing natural separation between the shell layers when the insulation is used in low-pressure and/or low-gravity space-related applications. To establish the spacing between shell layers, an edge clamp may be operatively coupled to an edge portion on at least one side of each shell layer. The shell layers may have sufficient flexibility and/or may be sufficiently displaceable relative to each other to allow the insulation to be installed or removed from the spacecraft component. One or more restraints may be provided in the space between the shell layers for restricting the relative lateral and/or transverse movement between shell layers for preventing contact. Additive manufacturing may be employed to fabricate the insulation and integrate features.
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20 Claims
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1. An additively manufactured three-dimensional multi-shell insulation for insulating at least one portion of a spacecraft, the insulation comprising:
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a plurality of shell layers of progressively increasing size that are nested together and formed as a unitary insulation member that is configured to at least partially surround the at least one portion of the spacecraft; each of the plurality of shell layers having layer edge portions on opposite sides of said each of the plurality of shell layers, and said each of the plurality of shell layers having a layer major portion extending between the layer edge portions; the respective layer major portions of each of the plurality of shell layers having at least one layer major surface that is configured to be spaced apart from an opposing layer major surface of an adjacent shell layer when in use in a low-gravity and/or low-pressure environment for minimizing thermal conduction between the shell layers; and the respective layer major portions of the respective adjacent shell layers of the plurality of shell layers have one or more restraints that are unitary with, and integrally formed between, the respective adjacent shell layers; wherein the respective one or more restraints of the respective adjacent shell layers are configured to allow the respective adjacent shell layers to be displaceable relative to each other up to a prescribed amount, and are configured to restrict the relative displacement between the respective adjacent shell layers beyond the prescribed amount. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification