Future space applications require the assembly of large structures in orbit. This can only be achieved by using autonomous robotic systems able to handle repetitive tasks with heavy and large parts in such challenging environment. This paper provides an overview of a system designed to perform autonomous assembly of segmented mirror tiles, as a proof of feasibility for assembling large structures in space using robotic technologies. We describe the hardware components of the system, and present the software layer, including assembly planning, and skill engine. An experimental evaluation of the assembly process is carried out, thus showing the performance achieved with the system.

The PULSAR (Prototype for an Ultra Large Structure Assembly Robot) project, aims at developing and demonstrating core technologies enabling the in-orbit assembly of the 8m-diameter primary mirror of a space telescope with an autonomous robotic system. This paper presents the demonstrator of In-Space Assembly in Simulation, which is designed as an integrated simulation tool for the prototyping and development of these autonomous assembly technologies.

Advances in our understanding of the universe have been enabled by ground and particularly by space-based telescopes (e..g. the Hubble), free of interferences from Earth’s atmosphere. However, current astronomical challenges in areas such as exoplanets, interstellar medium and structure of the universe, require larger telescope apertures. Using deployable structures and a segmented primary mirror, such as in the James Webb telescope, allows an increase of the aperture, but the maximum size of the telescope is anyways limited mainly by the fairing size of the launch vehicle. Further increasing the size of the telescope requires a technological change, to move toward space-based assembly using autonomous robotic systems. This paper provides a survey of existing concepts for in-space assembly of telescopes, and introduces PULSAR (Prototype of an Ultra Large Structure Assembly Robot), the latest European effort toward proving feasibility of the technologies required for autonomous robotic assembly of a telescope or a large spaceborne structure.

The PULSAR project aims to develop keytechnologies to enable the autonomous assembly of large structures in space. Similar to industrial applications, the assembly process relies on robotic systems capable of assembling modular elements to form a complex structure. However, the in-space assembly provides exceptional challenges necessitating innovation in fields such as free-floating manipulation and autonomous robotics. This paper provides details on the PULSAR project and, more specifically, on a hardware-in-the-loop demonstrator dLSAFFE, developed to show the assembly process of a large telescope mirror in a micro-gravity environment.

Autonomous assembly of large structures in space is a key challenge to implement future missions that will necessitate structures to be self-deployed as a single piece. This paper presents a mission analysis of existing concepts for in-space assembly of telescopes, provides a survey of relevant robotics technologies and introduces the expected contribution of the PULSAR (Prototype of an Ultra Large Structure Assembly Robot) project to this challenge.