Live Deployment of 8m Ka-band LEOB Large Deployable Reflector
On 11 May 2021, Large Space Structures GmbH performed the first deployment of the 8-m class LEOB reflector. The Large Deployable Reflector is designed for the Copernicus CIMR Radiometer mission, and is a 8-m, Ka-band rotating antenna – a one-of-its kind system, 100% produced in Europe. The complete deployment is shown in the video below, taken at LSS GmbH Facilities in Eching, Germany. This very first deployment of the LEOB Engineering Model was streamed live and its success demonstrates the high maturity of LDR technology in Europe. The successful deployment was attended and covered by ESA. The deployment closely follows another successfully milestone, the deployment of the LEA reflector earlier this year. LSS GmbH is responsible for the reflector design, manufacturing and testing of the Large Deployable Reflector Assembly. The LEOB project is funded by the European Space Agency, and led by HPS GmbH. Large Space Structures GmbH (LSS) is a company based near Munich, Germany, founded in 2012 as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich where its staff had been working on deployable reflectors and advanced composite membranes for more than two decades. It inherited from its academic background a very strong R&D philosophy, still developing break-through materials and technologies in partnership with various institutional, industrial and academic institutions from 0.5 m to >12 m reflectors and from P to W-band. For any enquiries, please contact us at info@largespace.de.
Live Deployment of 5m X-band LEA Large Deployable Reflector
Major Milestone Achievement Thanks to the dedicated work of partners (HPS, vH&S, INEGI, FHP, RUAG and TICRA amongst other) and its internal team, Large Space Structures GmbH celebrates a yet major milestone achievement. On 22nd February, 2021, the LEA Protoflight Model (PFM) reflector was deployed at Large Space Structures GmbH Facilities in Eching, Germany. The successful event was live streamed and demonstrated the high maturity of European Large Deployable Reflector, fully designed, built and tested by LSS GmbH. LSS GmbH has developed this Large Deployable Reflector (LDR) in the frame of the EC H2020 Large European Antenna (LEA) project, in a consortium led by HPS GmbH. This milestone is a crucial step towards the development of LDR European technology for non-dependence in space, an effort largely supported by the European Space Agency and the European Commission. Large Space Structures GmbH (LSS) is a company based near Munich, Germany, founded in 2012 as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich where its staff had been working on deployable reflectors and advanced composite membranes for more than two decades. It inherited from its academic background a very strong R&D philosophy, still developing break-through materials and technologies in partnership with various institutional, industrial and academic institutions from 0.5 m to >12 m reflectors and from P to W-band.
New ESA Project MilliWave
LSS has been awarded the project MillIWave (Millimeter-Wave Deployable Antenna for Small Satellites). The objective of the project is to develop and demonstrate deployable reflector antennas for CubeSat applications for operation at W-band (50-300 GHz) in the range of 0.5-1 m in diameter. The development of a folding antenna reflector operating at such high frequencies, much above the capabilities of any current state-of-the-art deployable antenna system, is an exceptional challenge. This challenge will be addressed by heavily relying on LSS expertise in advanced FlexRS®-I RF surface materials, its state-of-the art OriFlex® Origami Folding methodology and its innovative deployable structure architectures. The MilliWave project is funded by the European Space Agency, with Large Space Structures GmbH as the prime contractor and responsible for the conception, design, manufacturing and testing of the deployable reflector antenna assembly. Large Space Structures GmbH (LSS) is a company based near Munich, Germany, founded in 2012 as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich where its staff had been working on deployable reflectors and advanced composite membranes for more than two decades. It inherited from its academic background a very strong R&D philosophy, still developing break-through materials and technologies in partnership with various institutional, industrial and academic institutions from 0.5 m to >12 m reflectors and from P to W-band.