About the Mission
SpaceWorks Enterprises, Inc. was awarded a Phase I and Phase II Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) award from the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency (DARPA) for the development of a sustainable and evolvable orbital platform to provide persistent payload hosting capabilities in Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO).
The Phase I was executed from July 2016 to January 2017, with an option period executed from March 2017 to June 2017.
The Phase II began June 2017 and lasted until December 2018.
Mar 2020 : AFRL SBIR CPR Kick-off
Air Force Research Lab Space Vehicles (AFRL-SV) Directorate is seeking to further robotic OOSAM (On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing) technologies including capabilities that offer
- improved spacecraft performance
- greater space-asset resiliency
- lower spacecraft acquisition costs
Some of Air Force Space Commands (AFSPC) Support Plan technology needs also include:
- technology that supports lower mass
- agile and responsive tntegration
- resilient and responsive space vehicle integration and test techniques
- modular hardware and software for in-space assembly, repair and upgrade
Current AFSPC Space Maneuver and Servicing (SMS) efforts include needs of modular hardware to connect, disconnect, and reconnect hardware blocks or assemblies on orbit.
SpaceWorks is offering a novel docking system, branded FuseBlox™, developed from a DARPA Phase II SBIR (Topic: Persistent Platform in Geosynchronous Earth Orbit). The connector hardware was designed, prototyped, and tested in a lab setting.
The potential onboarding opportunities and synergies to other programs hosted by AFRL-SV directorate include this one:
- End effector candidate for future robotic iSA (In-Space Assembly) spacecraft such as Robotic Servicing Geosynchronous System (RSGS)
FuseBlox™
With the space economy at $441 billion dollars in 2020, and the increased commercial activity in space, SpaceWorks is developing FuseBlox™, a new hardware product — a connector technology that could revolutionize how future space stations, satellites, and space telescopes are built.
FuseBlox is a scalable and multifunctional rendezvous and docking connector technology that will enable on-orbit satellite servicing, modular assembly of large space structures, and space-based manufacturing and construction. SpaceWorks was awarded a protective patent on the novel FuseBlox design by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in July of 2021.
SpaceWorks updates this page as we hit each milestone, so check back often on our progress.
