Antenna Deployer Module

Key Ideas

Onshape CAD, Space Mechanisms, PEEK, DFMA, Electromagnetic Compatibility, Altium and Circuit Design, Timers, Testing, Ansys EM, Ansys Mechanical, Material Analysis

Project

I was first introduced to this project in first year, where I had joined the design team as a member in the COMMS subsystem of the ALEASAT project / UBC Orbit. One of my very first tasks on the team was to confirme the functionality of the (then) newly designed Antenna Deployer Board (ADB) and modify it to accomodate some quality of life features.

The Antenna Deployer Module (ADM) is the very top part of the 1U ALEASAT Cubesat, where many critical system components are housed, such as the ADB, 437MHz UHF antenna system, the GNSS antenna, as well as some miscellanious sensing boards. The core objective of the ADM, outside of housing some satellite components, is to deploy the UHF antennas out of the satellite body 45 minutes after the satellite is launched and released from its pod in the 2nd stage of the launch system. There is a strong requirement for the deployment to happen this long later to allow for the satellite to clear its surroundings and ensure it is not near any other spacecraft before it deploys.

After taking more of a leadership role in the COMMS team to become lead alongside the current lead, Eisha, I became captain but continued working under the Structure team. In a nice, full-circle way, I am now working on the mechanical deployment abd structural aspect of the V2 of the ADM, to improve on some fundemental mechanical shortcomings of the previous design. We are preparing to manufacture my design in the coming spring, and we will be taking it to Belgium to be thermal and vibration qualified (like its predecessor) in a two week test at ESA’s Cubesat testing facilities in the summer.

More details will be filled out as the new module is manufactured shortly!