Low Cost Solid Surface Deployable Reflector

Future Air Force satellites will require large aperture RF antennas for various missions in communications, signals intelligence, and Radar. At the same time, Operation Responsive Space (ORS) is striving to develop small satellite technology to provide flexibility and adaptability to meet new and evolving mission needs quickly. However, existing deployable antenna systems do not meet the cost requirements of ORS, therefore new deployable antenna systems with simple and elegant designs are required. The proposed technology is a thin, flexible, one-piece solid reflector that has a relatively simple deployable backing structure. These antennas will be low cost due to their inherent simplicity, and have the potential of operating at high frequencies because of the use of: 1) a solid reflective surface, and 2) CTD’s novel elastic memory composite materials in multi-functional components that provide substantial deployed stiffness, as well as deployment force and damping. However, achieving high-frequency capability will ultimately require the use of tuning adjustors (between the solid-surface deployable reflector shell and its backing structure) to correct for minor errors in the shape of the thin reflector shell. The proposed research will demonstrate the technical feasibility of a low cost deployable backing structure with built-in adjustment features.