DEFINITION:

It includes:

• High Stability and High Precision Structures.
• Inflatable and Deployable Structures.
• Hot Structures.
• Active / Adaptive Structures.
• Advanced Structural Concepts and Materials.

(Source: ESA TD 20 B, C, D, E and J)

SUBDOMAINS:

High Stability and High precision Structures, covering:

• material technologies for stable structures (manufacturing, verification, failure analysis and definition of allowables)
• joining and mounting (interfacing to other structures, verification of interfaces for high-stability and high-precision)
• thermo-elastic stability verification (design, analysis and test aspects)

(Note: see also 1-J-2 )

Inflatable and Deployable Structures, covering:

• design and verification (design tools, deployment simulation, test methodologies, combined verification methodologies)
• structural material concepts (material testing, laminate / membrane design, in-orbit curing aspects)
• joining technologies (design and verification of joints: flexible-to-flexible and flexible-to-rigid)

Hot Structures, covering:

• design and verification for ceramic and metallic hot structures (manufacturing, detailed design, analysis and tests aspects: static, dynamic and thermo-elastic)
• new advanced hot structures materials (such as UHT ones)
• joining technologies (fasteners, brazing and other methods, including verification)
• health monitoring (sensors, data recording and evaluation)

Active / Adaptive Structures, covering:

• sensors / actuators technologies (e.g. electroactive polymers (EAP), piezo patches, fibres). Mechanisms aspects covered by 1B11, 1B13 & 1B14
• technologies for Structural Integration (including application of various sensor/actuator combinations)
• data acquisition and control logic technologies related to structural dynamics (covering multi-body dynamics analysis tools and methodologies)
• design and verification tools and methodologies (including detailed analysis and test tools)

Advanced Structural Concepts and Materials, covering:

• design and verification technologies for structures manufactured from novel materials (nanotube reinforced, foams, self-healing materials etc.).