Space Habitat Mounting Flange for Airtight Bladder-to-Core Coupling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Space habitats face challenges with air leaks and structural stress at the core and bladder interface, which pose safety concerns and require a secure and airtight connection.
Innovation Solution
A mounting flange and bracket system is designed to securely couple the bladder of a space habitat to a cylindrical core, featuring a lip on the mounting flange, a bracket with a pin and protrusion for secure attachment, and a clamping ring to maintain an airtight seal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If the bladder is directly attached to the core, then the structure is simpler, but air leaks occur at the interface
Solution Approach 1:
A mounting flange is introduced as an intermediary component between the bladder and the core. The flange includes a mounting surface that interfaces with the core and a sealing surface that interfaces with the bladder, creating a dedicated sealing interface that prevents air leaks while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection interface is segmented into distinct functional zones: the mounting flange separates the structural support function (attached to core) from the sealing function (attached to bladder). This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function, with the flange providing both mechanical support and leak prevention.
2Force
If heavy loads are applied to the bladder, then the space habitat can support more equipment, but the bladder experiences excessive stress
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting flange acts as a mediator that transfers heavy loads from the bladder to the core structure. The flange's rigid structure and multiple attachment points distribute the load across a larger area, reducing stress concentration on the bladder while maintaining high load capacity for supporting equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting flange extends the load-bearing interface from a one-dimensional line contact to a two-dimensional surface contact between the bladder and core. This dimensional expansion distributes stresses more effectively across the interface, reducing peak stresses on the bladder material.
3Reliability
If a secure connection is made between bladder and core, then safety is improved, but the interface becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting flange is designed as a universal component that simultaneously provides multiple functions: structural support attachment to the core, sealing surface for the bladder, load distribution, and stress reduction. This multi-functionality achieves high connection security without proportionally increasing complexity, as one component performs several critical roles.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, devices, and systems are described for a mounting flange and bracket for a space habitat. The bracket system couples a bladder of a space habitat to a cylindrical core. The bracket system includes a soft goods layer configured to cover the bladder of the space habitat. The bracket system includes a mounting flange configured to couple at an end of the cylindrical core. The mounting flange includes a lip extending around the mounting flange. The bracket system includes a bracket configured to connect the soft goods layer to the mounting flange. The bracket has a first end and a second end. The first end includes a pin configured to couple to the soft goods layer. The second end includes a protrusion configured to latch to the lip of the mounting flange. In some variations, a cap is configured to be coupled to the outer side of the mounting flange.