European Space Suit Design Concept Verification 911575
The technology development work carried out within the framework of the European EVA System predevelopment activities and complemented with additional analyses and trades have resulted in an improved technical reference concept for the preparation of the Phase C/D activities.
The results of the technology breadboard model testing have been used to verify or alter the overall space suit design concept. Hardware have been manufactured and tested in the areas of:
Glove breadboard at the nominal suit pressure of 500 hPa
Rolling convolute shoulder joint bending performance
Thermal testing of arm Thermal Micrometeoroid Protection
Elbow soft joint mechanical evaluation
Seals and bearings performance as for torques and tightness
Oxygen high pressure regulators/valves performance characteristics
Sublimator heat removal and porous plate performance
CO2 removal performance in pure oxygen at lower pressures
Integrated Fan-Pump-Separator
Optimum design and crew comfort of bio-medial sensors
Voice processing for optimized crew performance.
This paper presents an overview of the result of the EVA technology development programme and the implications on the reference concept. The latest design status of the European EVA System space suit concept in the frame of the predevelopment work for the European Space Agency (ESA) is also presented.
