We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
  • TOPICS
    • Design
    • Manufacturing
    • Applications
    • Components
    • Industry
    • MRO
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Departments
    • Archives
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
  • NEWSLETTER
  • VIDEO
    • Power Transmission Engineering TV
    • Webinars
  • BLOGS
    • Revolutions
    • Editors Choice
    • Motor Matters with George Holling
    • Bearings with Norm
  • BUYER'S GUIDE
  • NEWS and EVENTS
    • Product News
    • Industry News
    • Events
  • Advertising
    • Brand Awareness
      • Print: Display Advertising
      • Print: Engineering Showcase
      • Online: Web Banners & Keyword Banners
      • Online: Sponsored Content (Native Advertising)
      • E-mail: Custom, White Papers & Webinars
      • Email: Sponsored Content (Native Advertising)
    • Response & Lead Generation
      • E-Mail: Sponsored Content (Native Advertising)
      • E-mail: Newsletters
      • E-mail: Custom, White Papers & Webinars
      • Online: Buyers Guide
      • Online: Sponsored Content (Native Advertising)
    • Print
      • Print: Display Advertising
      • Print: Engineering Showcase
      • Print: SPS/IMTS Showstoppers (August 2024)
      • Print: Engineering sMart
      • Print: Specifications
    • Online
      • Online: Web Banners and Keyword Banners
      • Online: Buyers Guide
      • Online: Sponsored Content (Native Advertising)
      • Online: Specifications
    • E-Mail
      • E-mail: Newsletters
      • E-mail: Custom, White Papers & Webinars
      • E-mail: Sponsored Content (Native Advertising)
      • E-mail: Specifications
    • Special Promotions
      • Print: Engineering Showcase
      • Print: Showstoppers (IMTS/SPS)
      • Print: Engineering sMart
  • Contact Us
  • AGMA
    • Membership
    • Events
    • Education
    • Emerging Technology
    • AGMA Media
      • Gear Technology
      • Gear Technology India
    • Standards
Subscribe
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Home » Maxon Motors Launch into Outer Space

Maxon Motors Launch into Outer Space

July 17, 2012

The flawless launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on May 22, 2012 is another successful step for Maxon Motor AG in the use of high precision motors in the astronautics industry. The crucial tasks of the Maxon motors in the SpaceX mission included orienting the solar arrays of the Dragon spacecraft towards the sun to provide the power supply. The first private cargo capsule in the history of space travel was launched into space on May 22, 2012 from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The voyage of the unmanned "Dragon" spacecraft, developed by the Californian company SpaceX, was a historical event for all involved. Never before has a private company developed a combined spacecraft and launch system that is capable of undertaking an orbital rendezvous and then returning to earth. Maxon brushless motors were used on the voyage to the ISS to rotate the solar arrays to keep them aligned with the sun as Dragon orbited the earth, open the instrument bay door which contains navigation equipment, and lock in place the fixture that allows Dragon to be grappled by the space station's robotic arm.

On May 25, 2012, astronaut Donald Pettit successfully used the 17.6 meter robotic arm of the ISS to grapple the Dragon and guide it to the docking point on the space station. The 4.4 meter tall Dragon spacecraft supplied 520 kg (1146 pounds) of scientific equipment and food to the ISS. On May 31, the six ton capsule detached from the ISS and splashed down under parachutes in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on the same day. The capsule was returning 660 kg (1455 pounds) of material from the ISS. Now that NASA has phased out its space shuttle program, the Dragon is the only means of transporting such large quantities of material back to earth.

The Maxon team has been working on the SpaceX motor project for the last year. This is a milestone in the history of Maxon, and the story isn't over yet, as NASA has contracted with SpaceX for another twelve flights to the ISS. In a few years, the spacecraft will carry seven astronauts to the international space station.

 

Product News
  • Related Articles

    Maxon Motor Assists Space Probe

    Maxon Offers Spindle Drive for DC Motors

    Maxon Motors Heading Back to Mars

Free Power Transmission Engineering Subscriptions
Subscribe
Free Power Transmission Engineering Subscriptions
Subscribe
FEATURED VIDEO
  • Sugar Refinery Dryer Fan with NSK Europe
March 1, 2023
RECOMMENDED
  • Digital Transformation Drives the Future of Packaging

    September 28, 2023
    Emerson1.jpg
  • Repowering the Future: Data-Driven Wind Farms

    September 28, 2023
    ONYX Insight.jpg
  • Paper Mill Precision

    August 15, 2023
    Rebuild1.jpg
  • FVA-Workbench Drives Progress in Marine Transmissions at Reintjes

    December 1, 2023
    pt1223_Page_18_Image_0010.jpg
  • Solid Edge 2024 Focuses on Performance and User Experience

    November 1, 2023
    SW1.jpg
  • FVA-Workbench Drives Progress in Marine Transmissions at Reintjes

    December 1, 2023
    pt1223_Page_18_Image_0010.jpg
  • Solid Edge 2024 Focuses on Performance and User Experience

    November 1, 2023
    SW1.jpg
  • Digital Transformation Drives the Future of Packaging

    September 28, 2023
    Emerson1.jpg
  • Subscribe
  • Advertise
  • Contribute
  • Gear Technology
Powered byAGMA
Copyright © 2023 Power Transmission Engineering
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact