Design and advanced manufacturing of a lunar rover using thermoplastic composites

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Lunar exploration has again become of high interest for space agencies. In the case of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), efforts are directed towards the development of a robotic arm for a lunar orbital station and a lunar rover. The main objective of our project is to design and manufacture a lightweight lunar rover through a collaborative project between an academic research team of ten researchers, from three institutions (Polytechnique Montréal, École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS) and Université Laval), CSA and three industrial partners (ArianeGroup, NanoXplore and MËKANIC). To reach this objective, the team will: (O1) design thermoplastic composite materials that meet the requirements of the space environment (e.g., high temperature, resistance to radiation, low outgassing), (O2) manufacture the rover components by additive manufacturing or pultrusion process using the materials developed in (O1), (O3) assemble the various composites components by induction welding, (O4) develop numerical models to predict the properties of composites and of the lunar rover structures and (O5) integrate the different systems to obtain a functional rover prototype. This work is the continuation of another project initiated by the CSA and funded by the CREPEC (Vision program) for three years. This research project proposes innovative material formulations, manufacturing and assembly solutions to significantly reduce the weight, cost and the manufacturing time of structures while improving product durability under extreme conditions. The realization of this ambitious project will point to a major technological breakthrough in the space sector and transportation in general and will be a unique showcase of the Canadian space program in Quebec, Canada and internationally. This project will provide a balanced training between experimental works and numerical modeling and will generate important knowledge advancements in various fields including thermoplastic composites, additive manufacturing, space-graded materials, etc.