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Completed TRL 5 (started at 5, targeting 5)
The leading concept for a Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission is to land a large rover on the surface of Mars capable of traversing the terrain, collecting samples of regolith left by the Mars 2020 (M2020) rover, and launching the sample cache back into orbit. A rover with these capabilities is estimated to have a mass on the order of 1600 kg, much heavier than any previous Mars rover. Hence, tires for this rover must support normal loads of 1600 N (350 lbs) while generating sufficient traction to traverse challenging terrain. The tires must also be resistant to damage from rocks, often at point loads reaching nearly 3200 N (700 lbs). In addition, the tires must be able to meet all of these requirements at Martian surface temperatures ranging from -130 to 90° C. The current state of Space tire technology does not meet these requirements. The primary goal of this effort was to demonstrate the high performance and durability of the new compliant NiTi Spring Tires at Martian surface temperatures.
The near-term focus (5-10 years) is to enable the MSR mission. A highly compliant tire will allow the rover to traverse difficult terrain with a very low risk of entrapment or failure. This not only allows the rover to explore areas of scientific interest that were previously deemed too risky, but also reduces the time and energy spent both circumventing dangerous terrain and assessing every driving maneuver. This tire technology has substantial benefits in the long-term (10-20 years) for both Earth and in Space. A crewed exploration vehicle on either the Moon or Mars is likely to be very heavy and will most likely require driving speeds much greater than what is used for the Mars rovers. This means that the tires must be able to absorb impacts without taking damage or reducing vehicle speed. On Earth, pneumatic tires suffer from two major issues: 1) the loss of driving efficiency due to changes in air pressure, and 2) the high likelihood of a flat tire due to puncture. The NiTi Spring Tire could potentially replace traditional tires in certain applications and solve both of these problems.
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