Design
Most of the free-flyer's systems are derived from the development of the Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER) backpack. The AERCam's thrusters, basic avionics, solid-state rate sensors, attitude hold electronics, nitrogen tank and hand controller are identical to those used on the SAFER. The AERCam thrusters, however, produce eight-hundredths of a pound of thrust while the SAFER thrusters produced eight-tenths of a pound of thrust.
The free-flyer is powered by lithium batteries. Its electrical supply and nitrogen supply are designed to last at least seven hours, the maximum length of a normal spacewalk. The AERCam sphere has a small floodlight built in that is identical to floodlights used on the helmets of spacesuits. Spaced equally around the sphere also are six, small, flashing yellow light-emitting diode lights that make the free-flyer visible to the operator in darkness.
The front of the sphere is marked by stripes and arrows while the back is marked by dots. These markings assist the operator in determining the orientation of the AERCam. A small fabric strap on the sphere serves as a handhold for the spacewalker while deploying and retrieving the free flyer.
Read more about this topic: AERCam Sprint
Famous quotes containing the word design:
“The reason American cars don’t sell anymore is that they have forgotten how to design the American Dream. What does it matter if you buy a car today or six months from now, because cars are not beautiful. That’s why the American auto industry is in trouble: no design, no desire.”
—Karl Lagerfeld (b. 1938)
“To nourish children and raise them against odds is in any time, any place, more valuable than to fix bolts in cars or design nuclear weapons.”
—Marilyn French (20th century)
“I always consider the settlement of America with reverence and wonder, as the opening of a grand scene and design in providence, for the illumination of the ignorant and the emancipation of the slavish part of mankind all over the earth.”
—John Adams (1735–1826)