Interstella

https://grabcad.com/library/team-interstella-3d-model-submission-1?fbclid=IwAR0d3Rmfny-1MbO2BGBLc-ZUjmVeh6qPR45GZGNKEsA9Y8CSoqbNAdU3Gb8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SHVW1B_iYg&ab_channel=PhysicsPathshala

What exactly does it do? How does it work?

The project contains the following designs:

1. Rover Wheel: For smooth mobility of rover on Mars regolith
2. Shovel: For efficient digging on the planet’s regolith
3. Hex bits: For joining several plastic parts together 
4. Hex bit storage case: For storing hex bits
5. Multipurpose furniture boards: For furniture that can be expanded/collapsed into a bed, chair, and sofa
6. Trolley: For drilling holes in plastic to act as sockets for hex bits
7. Hand drill: For drilling holes in plastic to act as sockets for hex bits
8. Storage Box Organizer: For storing explorers' items

ach of these designs consist of several small printed objects which need to be assembled together. We expect our explorers to print and assemble them according to the instructions provided by us. 

 What benefits does it have? 

When properly assembled, our tools will provide the explorers with a working habitat and a mobile rover for their exploration.

The tread added to the rover wheel will benefit the explorer and the observing space stations to track the direction travelled by the rover. Moreover, the tread was made using aluminum since Mars has a thin atmosphere and the intensity of UV rays coming from the Sun would damage the plastic. 

Our choice of using 2DPA-1 plastic provides a sturdy base material for our items and is an easy replacement for metal which we avoided using due to the need for welding which is not possible due to Mars’ climate.

The items are designed in a way to prevent any over-extending parts which can be difficult to hold up in the event of dusty windstorms that are characteristic to Mars.

Items like storage boxes were designed using honeycomb rectangles which enclose same amount of space as normal boxes but with less wall materials.

What do you hope to achieve? 

We hope that our explorers will:

1. Waste less time in setting up a maintainable habitat and thus, have more time to focus on their primary exploratory missions.
2. Have a sturdy habitat which will withstand the strong winds on Mars.
3. Be able to fully realize and utilize the multipurpose functionality of the designed items.
4. Have a mobile rover for mobile exploration.

What tools, coding languages, hardware, or software did you use to develop your project?

Shapr3d 

Fusion360 

TinkerCad web

GrabCAD

AutoCAD

Canva

Arc 3D Model Database was helpful for us to go through the wheel designs of previous rovers on Mars and gave us an idea of the parameters we need to consider while forming a practical design. It jolted us to pay attention to the tread patterns and the suitable material used for it to be visible on the planet’s regolith.

Deep Space Habitability Design Guidelines Based on the NASA NextSTEP Phase 2 Ground Test Program gave us the idea of how the habitats of previous space missions by NASA were designed. This provided us some footing in what climatic and surface conditions we needed to consider about Mars while creating our tool designs. 

NASA Space Apps Challenge was full of excitement and challenges for us. Working on a project for this challenge compelled us to advance our skills in designing and rendering 3D models and taught us the actuality of efficient 3D printing. It also compelled us to explore different CAD softwares in hopes of finding the most suitable one.

Before, we were electrical engineering students who knew only the basics of 3D modelling and we came out of this challenge being proficient enough to render our own 3D models. Our approach throughout the time was to capitalise on our learning and to search for key parameters which would aid our design efficiency and avoid setbacks. To do so, we had to go through tens of online tutorials, research papers and datasets. 

We like to thank BASIS for hosting and promoting Space Apps Challenge in Bangladesh and for their diligent mentoring and support.

[1] Irreversible synthesis of an ultrastrong two-dimensional polymeric material

[2] Mars Atmosphere Effects On Arc Welds: Phase 1

[3] ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION ON THE SURFACE OF MARS.

[4] Arc 3D Model Database

[5] Deep Space Habitability Design Guidelines Based on the NASA NextSTEP Phase 2 Ground Test Program

#Mars #regolith #habitat #3d #printing #hardware #cad #rover #wheel