ISRU Pilot Excavator Bucket Drum Flow

The In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Pilot Excavator Bucket Drum Flow experiment is designed to assess the performance of a regolith collection method that relies on bucket drum excavation technology. This technology allows regolith to be collected as the drums rotate, and then dispensed as they rotate in the opposite direction. These opposing rotations happen simultaneously to counteract excavation forces. The technology could be used on the Moon and other planets to enable low-mass robotic excavators to dig in low gravity environments.

Summary of Flight Test
2025-02-04 On 2/4/25 the IPEx team successfully completed their Bucket Drum Subsystem Flight Test. This test was an experiment on board Blue Origin's New Shepard 29 mission which created 2 minutes of artificial lunar gravity for automated payloads. The bucket drum experiment housed 6 scaled down versions of our excavation tools under vacuum and filled with various types of regolith simulant. The test provided valuable data to understand the flow of regolith in lunar conditions. This data will be used to reduce/eliminate the risk of regolith clogging or jamming inside the bucket drums. The experiment performed flawlessly during flight and all desired data was captured. The team will post process the data and release publications on the results.

The In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Pilot Excavator Bucket Drum Flow experiment is designed to assess the performance of a regolith collection method that relies on bucket drum excavation technology. This technology allows regolith to be collected as the drums rotate, and then dispensed as they rotate in the opposite direction. These opposing rotations happen simultaneously to counteract excavation forces. The technology could be used on the Moon and other planets to enable low-mass robotic excavators to dig in low-gravity environments. This has the potential to benefit NASA missions, the commercial space industry, other government agencies, and the nation.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 4) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.