DEFINITION:

It includes:

• Mechanism core technologies: Building-block technologies used individually or in combination to provide a mechanism function.
• Mechanism Engineering: Specific mechanism engineering knowhow to develop space-related mechanisms.
• Tribology Technologies: Technologies related to the science of interacting surfaces.

(Source: ESA TD 15A, F and G)

SUBDOMAINS:

Mechanism core technologies, covering:

1. • Actuators: Technologies to provide torque or force (e.g. electromagnetic motors, voice coils, piezo motors, shape memory alloy actuators, electroactive polymer actuators, spring actuators, paraffin actuators).
   • Dampers & Speed Regulator: Technologies to regulate the speed of a movable element or to damp mechanical loads (e.g. low melting point alloy regulator, fluid damper, mechanical damper, eddy current damper).
   • Motion Transformer: Technologies used to transform a motion (e.g. gears, pulleys and cables, harmonic drives, ball and roller screws).
   • Motion & Force Sensor: e.g. switches, optical encoders, resolvers, strain gauge sensors, capacitive sensors, accelerometers.
   • Guiding: Technologies providing linear or rotational guiding functions (e.g. ball and roller bearings, journal bearings, magnetic bearings, ball joints, flexible guides).
   • Sealing: Technologies providing a static or dynamic sealing function.
   • Electrical Transfer: Technologies whose function is to transfer an electrical signal between two parts in relative motion, with or without contact (e.g. slip rings, roll rings, contactless technologies).

Mechanism engineering, covering:

1. • Engineering Disciplines: Specific engineering disciplines involved in the design and development of space mechanisms (e.g. motorisation sizing, micro-vibration analysis, functional tolerance budgets, multi-body dynamic analysis, tribology).
   • Engineering Tools: Specific tools used to support the design and development of space mechanisms (e.g. bearing sizing software, multi-body dynamic analysis software).

Tribology Technologies, covering:

1. • Lubrication: Technologies providing a lubrication function (e.g. solid lubricants, fluid lubricants, self-lubricating materials).
   • Material Surface: Technologies providing a specific material surface performance (e.g. coatings, heat treatment). (Note: Issues related to material characterisation are covered in 1-B-7)