Ultra Fast Proximity Charging (UFPC-TP)

Astrobotic will provide a lightweight, ultra-fast charging solution, consisting of a base station and power receiver, as the first-of-its-kind, in-space proximity charging technology. Based on magnetic resonance charging technology that WiBotic and the University of Washington have co-developed and commercially offer in global industrial markets, these units are being developed to withstand the harsh environments of launch, cislunar transit, and the lunar surface. One of the most valuable near-term uses for proximity chargers is for lunar night survival applications. Surviving the lunar night is a challenge that has plagued the lunar community since the dawn of the Apollo days. Systems that have survived the night rely on incredibly complex, heavy, redundant, and nuclear power sources. This wireless charging technology could be leveraged to enable lunar night survival of heavily resource constrained robotic systems, such as small-scale mobile platforms, by transmitting power from a lunar lander or deployable solar array directly to heaters placed on sensitive components. Other applications include supporting marsupial roving missions, enabling robotic systems that do not contain onboard nuclear or solar power generators, and charging toolkits on crewed lunar terrain vehicles (LTVs), human landers, and in LEO. The objectives of this project are to: Develop a rover with integrated power receiver, and a base station, both capable of operating in a lunar environment. Demonstrate wireless charging as a feasible means of power transfer for lunar missions. Demonstrate that the system can enable lunar night survival. A team at NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) will facilitate final integrated testing of the hardware in the dirty thermal vacuum chamber, VF-13.

Wireless charging system would mitigate challenges for standalone tethered mated components systems that don’t have the resources to generate power independently through the traditional methods such as nuclear and solar. A charging technology such as this could have great utility not only on the Moon, but also in critical space applications on Mars, in orbit, and beyond. Wireless charging of robots is more reliable and less susceptible to error than mechanical mating. Lunar dust could foul mechanically mated mechanisms and induce arcing in a vacuum. Furthermore, it simplifies human use given that astronaut suits provide limited dexterity. Small rovers, like the CubeRover, have limited surface area and mass to host solar arrays for recharging. At this scale, thermal challenges are a critical risk and any area dedicated to solar power increases thermal flux while also diminishing radiator area that is needed to dissipate heat. Locating a large, efficient solar array on the lander can be more cost effective and have lower risk compared to putting solar cells on each small rover. The autonomous docking technology Bosch is developing for CubeRover could be applied to any mobile platform and made available to NASA. This applies to rovers, but also satellite constellations and capsule rendezvous with orbiting platforms. The visual and wireless-power-enabled navigation capabilities can enable more precise charge positioning than teleoperated solutions. This will facilitate autonomous and power efficient docking of the rover under challenging environmental conditions.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 5) — 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.

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