Blue Origin, LLC

Additive manufacturing systems and associated methods are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the additive manufacturing includes a build chamber that has a central portion and a peripheral portion, a support platform positioned in the central portion and a recoater arm movable in a lateral direction over the support platform. While moving, the recoater arm spreads a powder over the central portion during a build. The additive manufacturing system also includes a powder recycling system positioned to redirect excess amounts of the powder during the build. For example, the powder recycling system can include a powder receptacle positioned the second region of the peripheral portion and a recycling element positioned at least partially in the powder receptacle. The recycling element is movable between a first position abutting an overflow space in the powder receptacle to receive the excess powder and a second position closer to the central portion.

Additive manufacturing systems and associated methods are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the additive manufacturing system includes a build chamber that has active build region, a support platform positioned in the active build region, a recoater arm, and a chamber-purging system. The recoater arm is movable in a lateral direction along a travel path above the active build region to spread a powder over the active build region. The chamber-purging system includes extendable input and return channels that are movable between a first position outside the travel path and a second position at least partially within the travel path.

Additive manufacturing systems and associated methods are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the additive manufacturing system includes a build chamber that has an active build region, a support platform positioned in the active build region and movable in an upward direction, and a recoater arm positioned in the build chamber and movable in a first lateral direction above the active build region. The recoater arm can spread a powder over the active build region during a build process using first and second blades. The recoater arm can also include at least one orifice component positioned between the first and second blades to block a flow of the powder while the at least one orifice component is stationary and a vibrational component operably coupled to the at least one orifice component. The additive manufacturing system can also include a controller operably coupled to the vibrational component, to control operation of the vibrational component.

Systems and methods for securing an upright rocket. The rocket may be on a moveable platform, such as a landing area of a ship. The rocket may land on the deck, and the system may include cables that surround the landing area. The cables may be tightened about the rocket after the rocket has landed in an upright position. The system may include poles that telescope upward, such that the cables may tighten about the upright rocket at various heights along the body of the rocket.

Stacked satellite dispensing systems are described herein. The disclosed systems have diagonal struts that stabilize satellite stacks horizontally and vertically without adding performance-reducing mass. The diagonal struts increase the number of bracing points and improve stability. The improved stability can allow for the satellite stack to be made heavier and taller, such as by having more satellites than a dispensing system with vertical struts. The diagonal struts, which provide the improved stability, can also allow for sub-stacks to be used. The sub-stacks include batches of satellites retained by the stacked satellite dispensing system. Therefore, the stacked satellite dispending system can release single satellites batches at once, rather than all the satellites at once.

Systems and methods are provided for wirelessly transferring power to a multi-junction photovoltaic cell of a space apparatus via a light emission system. The light emission system uses multiple lasers emitting different wavelengths and/or photon energies to produce electron-hole pairs in each layer of the multi-junction photovoltaic cell to prompt power generation by the multi-junction photovoltaic cell. The light emission system may be located on Earth or on another space apparatus. The multi-junction photovoltaic cell can convert sunlight and the light emitted by the light emission system into electrical energy.

A heat exchanger system, in particular a vacuum spray boiler, cools a hot fluid by spraying a coolant onto chambers carrying the hot fluid. This process may be performed in i) a vacuum, as in space, ii) atmospheric pressure, as on a launch pad of a space vehicle, or iii) any pressure therebetween. The heat exchanger system may incorporate a plate-fin heat exchanger. A coolant spray apparatus, used for spraying the coolant, and the heat exchanger are integrated within a vacuum chamber. The coolant, subsequent to changing to a vapor state after being sprayed onto the heat exchanger, may be exhausted to outside the system.

Systems, a device, and methods of operating the device are disclosed. The device acquires cryogenic liquid in a tank in low-gravity and provides the liquid to an end user, such as a rocket engine. The device helps reduce vortex flows that tend to occur in tanks. The device, the liquid therein, and liquid in the tank may be cooled by a fluid flow from a thermodynamic vent or cryocooler. Such cooling may resultantly reduce pressure in the tank. Thus, the device may provide tank pressure control in space vehicles with cryogenic propellant. The device may have an annular shape that allows flow to a main tank output port to be substantially uninterrupted so as to have a relatively low pressure drop.

Methods and configurations for solar heating and beneficiation of a material, such as raw mine-extracted material like lunar rocks or regolith, are presented. Beneficiation may have an end-goal of purifying the material and/or removing particular impurities or undesired substances from the material. For example, purification or elimination of particular substances from a bulk material may be achieved by vaporizing, via solar or electron beam heating, a portion of the bulk material that does not include the particular substances. The bulk material, sans the particular substances, may be subsequently condensed onto a cold substrate as a thin film, which itself may be placed in a subsequent beneficiation iteration for further elimination of selected substances.

Techniques and systems are used to fabricate a thermal protection systems (TPS) for placement on various parts of a structure, such as a spacecraft. The TPS may comprise syntactic foam as a spray-on foam insulation (SOFI), which may be sprayed onto a surface. Alternatively, the TPS may comprise syntactic foam that is applied as preformed panels that are adhered or mechanically attached to a surface. Performance of a syntactic foam may be improved by including an aluminosilicate nanotube material, such as halloysite nanotubes, in a matrix material. The halloysite nanotubes may be hydrated and treated with a silane couplant before being mixed into the matrix material, which may be a two-part silicone based syntactic insulator material, for example. The halloysite nanotubes, in addition to acting as a filler and reinforcement for the syntactic insulator material, release water during oblation, thus contributing to the effectiveness of a TPS.