(ORDO NEWS) — AI-designed spacecraft and mission hardware may look odd, but they weigh less and can handle higher loads.
To create these parts, the computer-aided design specialist starts with the requirements of the mission and draws surfaces where the part connects to the instrument or spacecraft, as well as bolts and fittings for electronics and other equipment.
The designer also needs to consider that the algorithm can accidentally block the laser beam or optical sensor.
Finally, with more complex builds, space is sometimes required for technicians to work on assembling and leveling.
Once all zones are defined, artificial intelligence connects the dots, creating complex structures in just an hour or two.
“Algorithms really need the human eye,” said Ryan McClelland, research engineer. “Human intuition knows what looks right, but left to its own devices, the algorithm can sometimes make structures very thin.”
The improved parts save up to two-thirds of the weight compared to traditionally designed components, he says.
“You can design, analyze and prototype a part and have it in your hands in as little as one week,” McClelland said. “It can be radically fast compared to how we used to work.”
Details are also analyzed using standard NASA software to identify potential points of failure, McClelland said.
“After stress analyzes, we found that parts designed with the algorithm do not have the same stress concentration as in human structures.
Stress factors are almost ten times lower than parts designed by an experienced human designer.”
McClelland’s advanced components have been adopted by NASA missions at various stages of design and construction, including astrophysical observatories, earth-atmosphere scanners, planetary instruments, space weather monitors, space telescopes, and even a Mars sample return mission.
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