Satellite tv for pc manufacturing is getting into a brand new section, one the place complexity meets customization, and conventional manufacturing strategies are making room for additive manufacturing (AM). On the heart of this transfer is SWISSto12, an organization utilizing 3D printing to rethink how satellites are designed and made. This transformation is generally evident in radio frequency (RF) communications, which energy all the things from broadband web to protection methods, and it’s right here that SWISSto12 is pushing AM additional than ever earlier than.
“Additive manufacturing in satellite tv for pc manufacturing has advanced from a novel idea to a totally certified and trusted course of,” Mathieu Billod, Head of Manufacturing Applied sciences at SWISSto12, instructed 3DPrint.com. “SWISSto12 has been on the forefront of this transformation over the past twelve years.”
With over 1,000 3D printed parts already in orbit, the corporate is proving that 3D printing is changing into commonplace for essential methods in area.
From Idea to Confidence
Based in 2011 as a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Know-how in Lausanne (EPFL), SWISSto12’s journey with AM started with RF parts, that are important for sending and receiving alerts in area. However the firm didn’t cease there. “We’ve expanded into structural, thermal, and mechanical domains,” says Billod. “Now we’re centered on scaling manufacturing, enhancing high quality, and packing extra capabilities into fewer components.”
On the core of SWISSto12’s strategy is high-precision metallic AM, primarily utilizing Selective Laser Melting (SLM). The corporate prints complicated buildings in certified aluminum alloys, guaranteeing components meet the strict mechanical, thermal, and RF efficiency necessities of area missions. In some instances, SWISSto12 additionally applies floor metallization methods to spice up conductivity and optimize RF conduct in printed parts.
SWISSto12 makes use of MetalFabG2 metallic 3D printers to make RF parts like this multibeam cluster.
This drive to combine and simplify is the place AM makes the largest affect. Conventional satellite tv for pc manufacturing depends upon subtractive strategies—slicing and shaping metallic into components, then assembling them like a puzzle. However 3D printing breaks from that mannequin.
“Our additive manufacturing course of is basically totally different. It allows better design freedom, permitting us to consolidate a number of capabilities right into a single light-weight element. By integrating AM from the earliest levels of design, we get rid of pointless interfaces and scale back dimension, weight, and complexity—one thing conventional strategies can’t match.”
Mathieu Billod, head of Statcom consumer terminal merchandise at SWISSto12.
Weight is all the things in area. The lighter the satellite tv for pc, the cheaper it’s to launch—and the more room is left for payloads. SWISSto12’s 3D printed waveguides, as an illustration, can scale back platform dimension by as much as 30%. These compact parts assist excessive RF efficiency whereas liberating up priceless area contained in the satellite tv for pc.
Past lighter designs, the components are additionally constructed for better sturdiness: “We use totally certified aluminum alloys that meet or exceed conventional mechanical and thermal requirements,” says Billod. By strengthening high-stress areas and decreasing meeting steps, SWISSto12 improves reliability in excessive situations, essential for satellites anticipated to outlive years in orbit. What’s extra, its processes are aligned with European Cooperation for House Standardization (ECSS) requirements, which SWISSto12 helped to create, guaranteeing each half meets rigorous space-grade reliability expectations.
Actual Missions, Actual Outcomes
SWISSto12’s know-how is already working in orbit. Its RF parts are a part of the EUTELSAT Konnect VHTS and EUTELSAT 10B satellites, launched with Thales Alenia House. These missions show that 3D printed components can carry out properly in area, even with heavy knowledge calls for.
Constructing on that success, SWISSto12 is increasing into full satellite tv for pc manufacturing. Its new HummingSat platform—a collaboration with Thales Alenia and backed by the European House Company (ESA)—is designed to ship conventional geostationary (GEO) satellite tv for pc capabilities in a a lot smaller, lighter, and extra inexpensive bundle. Enabled by AM, HummingSat goals to reshape the GEO market by providing agility and price financial savings with out compromising efficiency. The primary mission, developed for Intelsat, is anticipated to launch within the coming years.
SWISSto12’s HummingSat
Past orbit, the corporate additionally brings its RF printing experience to Earth. They’ve developed floor terminals for protection, emergency response, and occasion connectivity. One latest venture options fixed-beam antennas with 95% radiation effectivity, made attainable by 3D printing monolithic apertures. They’re light-weight, transportable, and designed for fast deployment, which is right for high-demand environments. The crew can be creating electronically steered antennas, which use software-defined beam motion and provide broad purposes throughout protection, aviation, and maritime markets.
One in all AM’s largest guarantees is flexibility. “AM permits us to tailor subsystems to mission-specific wants with out the price or delay of customized tooling,” says Billod. That is particularly vital for the fast-rising area financial system, the place each mission has totally different satellite tv for pc necessities and sizes, payload calls for, and frequency bands.
Billod notes that SWISSto12 is getting ready for this demand: “We’re additionally scaling up our personal manufacturing with extra printers to fulfill rising demand, reflecting AM’s key function in enabling scalable area architectures.”
That infrastructure will enable them to sooner or later manufacture satellites or key subsystems on-demand, at velocity.
“Whereas we’re not totally there but, ongoing automation and printer functionality expansions are fast-tracking our potential to ship {hardware} with unprecedented velocity and customization,” explains the engineer. “We envision a near-future situation the place satellites or subsystems could be produced on-demand to fulfill pressing operational necessities. Our scalable manufacturing mannequin and versatile design strategy are key enablers.”
Trimming the Satellite tv for pc Footprint
There’s additionally a sustainability story behind this shift. AM wastes far much less materials than conventional machining, which begins with giant blocks of metallic and cuts away the surplus. The professional explains that SWISSto12 can scale back launch mass, half depend, and meeting time. That interprets to decrease emissions throughout the satellite tv for pc’s lifecycle, from manufacturing to launch.
These enhancements additionally scale back prices, serving to clients save on manufacturing and transport. However even with these features, AM nonetheless faces challenges.
One main hurdle comes from the legacy method of constructing RF parts, which frequently required assembling many small components by hand. This made integration complicated and raised the danger of misalignment. 3D printing simplifies this by consolidating components right into a single construction, enhancing RF efficiency and precision whereas slicing weight, explains Billod.
One other problem is connecting new 3D printed components with conventional electronics. The success right here depends upon cautious co-design, thermal planning, and mechanical integration from the start. SWISSto12 developed particular instruments to assist clients consider and fine-tune efficiency early.
Lastly, industry-wide adoption has been slowed by misconceptions about AM’s maturity; many nonetheless see the know-how as experimental. To shift this view, SWISSto12 has labored carefully with satellite tv for pc makers and helped form requirements like these of the ECSS.
As Billod warns, the largest misunderstanding is pondering that 3D printing is a straightforward, plug-and-play resolution.
“With out early design integration, many advantages are misplaced. At SWISSto12, we emphasize a co-design strategy with clients to unlock the complete potential of AM,” he says.
3D printed area payloads, antennas and RF parts.
The Highway Forward
Billod factors to a few large tendencies: deeper integration of electronics and RF, the rise of multifunctional components, and on-demand manufacturing at scale.
“SWISSto12 is actively constructing the infrastructure, each in know-how and expertise, to steer this shift. Our increasing capabilities, deep requirements involvement, and improvements in floor and area terminals all place us as a key participant shaping the way forward for additive manufacturing within the area {industry},” he says.
Within the fast-moving world of area tech, SWISSto12’s strategy is pragmatic however formidable. The corporate isn’t just printing components, however making an attempt to reshape how satellites are made, custom-made, and delivered. Because the area financial system grows extra dynamic, SWISSto12’s mixture of precision, flexibility, and velocity could properly set a brand new commonplace.
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