Plug & Play Modular Robotic Mining System

Our proposal to utilize Line Replace Units (LRUs) is a significant step toward enabling industrial-scale lunar operations. This innovative approach will enhance the system's self-maintenance capabilities and ensure its longevity, even as it excavates thousands of tons of material over years of operations. The scale of this task is exemplified in our estimate for a lunar propellant pilot plant, which will require the deployment of 37 robots for excavation, collection, and hauling functions. The maintenance of these robots is a critical aspect, necessitating a system that can effortlessly remove and replace worn-out subsystems and components through dedicated maintenance robots. Our innovation for maintenance enhancement modularity is a meticulously crafted comprehensive design approach that ensures the unit can be readily serviced robotically and with a high degree of autonomy. This approach addresses the critical factors of diagnostics, accessibility, interfaces, required tooling, and support systems. This innovation will also extend to OffWorld’s terrestrial mining robots, further enhancing their serviceability and autonomy. OffWorld will review our lunar Prospector robot design and evaluate its terrestrial mining robots to identify the subsystems and components relevant to Prospector that have demonstrated the highest risk of failure. Terrestrial experience will be complemented by researching relevant system performance in the lunar environment from planetary rovers. A Reliability, Availability, and Maintainability analysis will be completed using the data from OffWorld’s terrestrial mining system performance and available lunar rover performance. The resulting critical subsystems and components will be downselected to determine where the most benefits can be obtained. A development plan to obtain the necessary capabilities will be created. This plan will identify the expected performance capabilities, costs, schedule, and associated risks.

NASA and OffWorld share the desire to maximize the development of lunar In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). This work will make that possible on an industrial scale by drastically reducing the maintenance burden on the robotic mining vehicles that will be necessary to make ISRU a reality. OffWorld is in the process of expanding its commercial offerings of robotic mining systems here on Earth. These are intended to operate in a mining environment that is too dangerous for people to be exposed to. When these machines inevitably experience a breakdown, it is imperative that they be able to be repaired and maintained robotically. This work will enable OffWorld to do just that.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 2) — 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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