Flying from Earth to the Moon requires more than just entering coordinates into Google Maps, and then letting GPS satellites direct the way. It also involves moving across the lunar surface. To ensure success, NASA’s autonomous vehicle plans to launch into orbit and bounce around the Moon’s surface require extraordinary situational awareness.
Xavier Orr, Cutting-edge new navigation technology to the Moon taken by Australia has taken a huge step forward.
Flying from Earth to the Moon requires more than just entering coordinates into Google Maps, and then letting GPS satellites direct the way. It also involves moving across the lunar surface. To ensure success, NASA’s autonomous vehicle plans to launch into orbit and bounce around the Moon’s surface require extraordinary situational awareness.
Xavier Orr, the engineer of robotics and artificial intelligence, states that a toppled lander is not an option. Satellite-sized craters in the regolith are another option.
Orr’s Sydney-based Advance Navigation has signed a deal to develop position-finding equipment for three landers as well as two relay satellites. This will be done by US space systems company Intuitive Machines.
Advanced Navigation has made both systems more appealing to the space industry. They are lighter, more compact, smaller, more energy efficient, and better at pinpointing. All that combined will provide $85 million in additional capacity Intuitive machines can use to pay for cargo.
Advanced Navigation is the leading contender to be Australia’s first company that has placed a product on Mars. However, it faces fierce competition in sensor processing fields and remote robotics.
Both the Boreas and LIDAV technology are available. Later this year, a test rig will go into space. Participating in a demonstration mission on the Moon in 2024 will be the next challenge. As part of the Artemis exploration program, this will chart the route for NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Service.
Intuitive Machines, which will be using the technology to guide three landers as well as two communication relay satellites, will also use it. The Nova-D cargo system will regularly deliver payloads of 500-1000 kg to the Moon’s surface by 2025.
“It is imperative that large lunar payload customers have confidence that our systems will deliver cargo safely and reliably,” Dr. Tim Crain, Chief Technology Officer at Intuitive machines. “If we are able to demonstrate Advanced Navigation’s technology using our Nova-C landing craft, we can greatly improve the reliability of landing with NovaD.”
Lighter, smaller, better
Advanced Navigation was established in 2012 and supplies its technology to companies like Airbus, Boeing (Google, Apple, Apple, General Motors), and Boeing. Orr claims that this is why Advanced Navigation can deliver the LiDAV/Boreas systems in such short time frames – despite global supply chain disruptions caused by pandemics.
He says, “We are very fortunate that we have a photonics department and manufacturing line.” The Boreas X90 shares 98% with the D90 version, which is non-space rated. It’s now in volume production, so there is a backlog.
The LiDAV unit shares approximately 70% of its components also with the Boreas.
Orr says that they are both laser interference products. Both have a laser source and optical chips, as well as a measurement apparatus. It’s almost identical on the processing side. That crossover is a great thing.
For aircraft take-off and landing systems, smaller, lighter equipment is more in demand. It is also used in autonomous vehicles, whether they are on the ground, under the water or in the air. Space is the ultimate frontier.
Orr says that the hardest part was making it suitable to vacuum. This meant ensuring that metals with different expansion rates and contraction rates don’t cause unwanted bends or cracks.
The biggest challenge was radiation. “We had some experts provide us with some guidance on this one, how to not use too much heavy shielding.”
This meant disassembling everything and reconfiguring it so that non-sensitive passive parts could be used as radiation buffers for sensitive active components.
Orr states, “We have a lot of testing to do.” “We’ve done a lot already.”
The Rise of Boreas
External forces exist everywhere. Even in a vacuum space.
Orr states that “your velocity is constantly changing.” Orr states that “there’s always going be some large body creating a gravitational draw.” You can use that gravitational pull to send a payload towards the Moon by using slingshot maneuvers.
Inertial navigation doesn’t seem new. You will need an accelerometer, a gyroscope, and a gyroscope. The accelerometer detects the effect of gravity and the nudge caused by maneuvering thrusters. The gyroscope measures angular velocities.
“From this, you can calculate how many miles you have traveled, the direction you are pointing in and where you are going.”
All of this works without the need for external inputs, such as visual star chart references. Boreas is unique in that it is the first and only digital fiber optics gyroscope.
