Deployable Raceway Harness for Multi-Stage Rocket
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Multi-stage rocket and missile systems face challenges in minimizing aerodynamic drag and weight due to the need for robust guidance wiring, which is difficult to integrate into larger rockets and prone to failure under thermal loads, especially with composite raceway covers being expensive and hard to manufacture.
Innovation Solution
A deployable raceway cover and cable assembly that detaches from the rocket after stage separation, reducing the weight and aerodynamic profile by isolating the first cable bundle with the raceway cover, thereby optimizing burnout velocity and range.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If wires are run outside the rocket stages along the exterior, then space for rocket motors is optimized, but aerodynamic drag increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the wires from the exterior of the rocket stages and relocates them through internal pathways within the stages and guidance unit. This extraction eliminates the need for external raceway covers and fasteners, reducing aerodynamic drag while maintaining motor space optimization.
Solution Approach 2:
The wires are nested within the internal structures of the rocket stages and guidance unit, running through pre-configured pathways. This nesting approach integrates the wiring system into the existing structural framework, avoiding external attachments that would increase drag.
2Device complexity
If wires are laminated into the side of the rocket body, then raceway covers and fasteners are eliminated, but lamination is difficult in larger rockets with multiple stages
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the wiring system into modular units, with each rocket stage having its own internal wiring pathways and the guidance unit having separate access points. This segmentation allows each stage to be manufactured independently with integrated wiring, avoiding the complexity of laminating large quantities of wire across multiple stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The wiring pathways are pre-configured during the manufacturing of each rocket stage and the guidance unit. Wires are routed through pre-formed channels and secured at predetermined locations, eliminating the need for post-assembly lamination operations on the finished rocket structure.
3Ease of manufacture
If lighter and flatter wires are used for lamination, then integration into the rocket body is improved, but EMI shielding, insulation and robust cabling features are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple wire bundles together within the internal pathways of each stage and the guidance unit. By combining multiple individual wires into consolidated bundles, the system achieves robust cabling characteristics including improved EMI shielding and insulation while maintaining ease of integration into the rocket structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The wire bundles are constructed using composite cable structures that integrate conductive cores with insulating and shielding layers. This composite approach provides robust EMI shielding and insulation properties while the bundled configuration allows for efficient routing through the rocket's internal structures.
4Weight of moving object
If composite raceway covers are used to reduce weight, then burn out velocity is maximized, but they are expensive, susceptible to thermal load failure, and difficult to manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the wires from external raceway covers and relocates them through internal pathways within the rocket stages and guidance unit. This extraction eliminates the need for separate raceway cover components, thereby eliminating the associated manufacturing complexity, thermal load vulnerabilities, and high costs of composite raceway covers.
Solution Approach 2:
The wiring system is merged with the structural components of the rocket stages and guidance unit by routing wires through pre-formed internal pathways. This integration eliminates the need for separate protective covers, as the structural elements themselves provide the necessary protection and routing functionality.
Data Source
AI summary
A deployable raceway harness assembly for use with a multi-stage rocket includes a first cable bundle configured to extend across a second stage of a multi-stage rocket from a guidance unit to a first stage of the rocket. The deployable raceway harness assembly includes a deployable raceway cover configured for detachable coupling with the multi-stage rocket. The deployable raceway cover extends over at least the first cable bundle and a second cable bundle. The first cable bundle is fastened to the deployable raceway cover. The second cable bundle is configured to extend from the guidance unit to the second stage and is shorter than the first cable bundle. An in-flight deployment mechanism is configured to detach the deployable raceway cover and the first cable bundle extending across the second stage from the multi-stage rocket in-flight leaving the second cable bundle extending to the second stage in place.