초록 ▼

A deployable truss structure desirable for space applications is disclosed. The structure is triangular in cross section, with each longitudinal face of the structure being comprised of parallel longeron members interconnected by parallel batten members, the battens located at the mid-section of eac

A deployable truss structure desirable for space applications is disclosed. The structure is triangular in cross section, with each longitudinal face of the structure being comprised of parallel longeron members interconnected by parallel batten members, the battens located at the mid-section of each face being non-rigid members, the structure including hinged diagonal members.

대표청구항 ▼

A truss structure movable between a collapsed position and a deployed position, having: at least one frame unit, each frame unit comprised of three rigid batten, longeron, and diagonal members and three non-rigid batten members; the three rigid batten members being connected at their end points so a

A truss structure movable between a collapsed position and a deployed position, having: at least one frame unit, each frame unit comprised of three rigid batten, longeron, and diagonal members and three non-rigid batten members; the three rigid batten members being connected at their end points so as to form an equilateral triangle; each longeron being pivotally connected at a first end to an associated rigid batten member at each point of the triangle such that the longeron pivots about an axis perpendicular to the plane defined by its deployed and collapsed longitudinal axes and such that, in the deployed position, each longeron is perpendicular to the plane defined by the triangle; each diagonal being hinged approximately at its mid-point and being hinged at its end points to the longeron and the associated rigid batten member, with each hinge approximately parallel to those of the longeron; the non-rigid batten members being joined at the diagonal-longitudinal junction of one frame unit to the diagonal-longitudinal junction of an adjacent frame unit; and each non-rigid batten member having two ends and having a fully extended length, measured linearly from one end to the other end, and a deformed length, measured linearly from one end to the other end upon deformation of the non-rigid batten member, wherein the fully extended length is greater than the deformed length; wherein each non-rigid batten member is dimensioned for allowing the non-rigid batten members to achieve their fully extended length upon the truss structure being in the collapsed position and for allowing the non-rigid batten members to deform and achieve their deformed length upon the truss structure being moved to a position intermediate the collapsed and deployed positions.