Synthetic muscle headed to the ISS for testing

Brett Smith for redOrbit.com – @ParkstBrett

When SpaceX launches the sixth resupply mission to the International Space Station this week, it will be carrying experimental “robotic muscles” that a Massachusetts company hopes can be used to make the next generation of robots.

According to Lenore Rasmussen – founder of Ras Labs in Quincy, Massachusetts –her company’s synthetic muscle tissue in could be used to make robots capable of moving in environments that are too dangerous for humans. The material, called Synthetic Muscle, could also be used to make state-of-the-art prosthetics, Rasmussen added.

“For space robots and people on Earth, I want to develop a realistic prosthetic arm in form and function,” she explained. “I envisioned designing something as delicate as a human hand with customized motion and control for an individual’s needs, restoring mobility and freedom to those who have been injured.”

Testing out of our atmosphere

Synthetic Muscle is produced from a special polymer that tightens when electrically charged and loosens to its original condition when the charge is removed. It can be produced with conventional manufacturing processes or with 3-D printing.

For the upcoming ISS tests, astronauts will expose Synthetic Muscle to cosmic and solar radiation to gauge its resilience within these harsh conditions. Last summer, the material reacted well when subjected to high levels of gamma radiation at the Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, according to NASA.

“Early indications from the ground-based experiments indicate the material’s electroactive polymers are radiation resistant,” Rasmussen said. “The next logical step is to test the material outside of our atmosphere where there is a full spectrum of solar and cosmic radiation to see if it would still function and could be used in robots in deep space where they may encounter even higher radiation levels and cosmic effects like high linear energy transfer (LET) particles.”

Tests are scheduled for several variants of the material – each with various additives and coatings. The materials will be attached to the interior of the ISS and photographed over the course of 90 days before going back to Earth for various integrity assessments.

The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) coordinates the commercial endeavors on the ISS and company director Warren Bates said Synthetic Muscle has appeal to not only for space robotics applications, but also in terms of its potential medical applications.

“Synthetic Muscle lined up perfectly with our mission to drive studies in space to improve our quality of life, from medical applications to commercial products,” Bates said. “The space station’s extreme environment provides an ideal platform for testing and analysis of these materials.”

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