Extreme Environment
Product Features
Also see the Construction & Resource Utilization eXplorer (CRUX) for drilling, sampling and sensing in cold, icy and low-gravity environments.
High-Temperature Motor
Applications for extreme temperature motors include powering:
- pumps and valves for liquid metal cooling systems, material lifting from oil and geothermal wells, and turbine fuel and steam control
- gimbals for expendable launch vehicle engines and components of spacecraft that orbit close to the Sun or Mercury
- gas turbine starter/generators for aircraft engines, and
- robotic exploration vehicle systems that operate in and around terrestrial volcanoes and deep ocean hydrothermal vents
Honeybee Robotics has developed and demonstrated such a first-generation prototype of an extreme temperature motor for possible future use on the surface of Venus. No off-the-shelf motors, or known R&D prototype motors, exist that are capable of operating under Venus surface conditions for any appreciable or reliable amount of time.
Under Phase I funding from the NASA Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program, a small switched-reluctance type motor, which operates without permanent magnets, was built and successfully tested at temperatures up to 460°C. The motor continued to function as it was brought to temperature (460°C) several times over two hours during which time it was started and stopped repeatedly.
Honeybee has been awarded a Phase 2 SBIR contract for continued development and performance characterization of the Venus motor and drill system.
An optimized version of this motor could be used to power drills, robotic arms, and other devices that may be landed on the surface of Venus. The motor’s capability to survive for hours (and potentially indefinitely) in such a harsh environment would therefore revolutionize the exploration of Venus.