Rock West Composites completes development model design for robotic arm

An artist’s concept of Canadarm3, Canada’s robotic system, located on the exterior of the Gateway, a small space station in orbit around the moon. Photo Credit: Canadian Space Agency, NASA

Rock West Composites (RWC, San Diego, Calif., U.S.) has completed the design of the development model for Canadarm3, Canada’s robotic arm for the lunar Gateway Program which is an important component of NASA’s Artemis missions. RWC is collaborating with MDA (Richmond, Canada), a developer and manufacturer in advanced technology solutions for the space industry. The team will design, analyze, manufacture and test the two primary boom structures and supporting spare units for Canadarm3.

According to the Canadian Space Agency, “Canadarm3 will be Canada’s contribution to the U.S.-led Gateway, a lunar outpost that will enable sustainable human exploration of the moon. This highly autonomous robotic system will use cutting-edge software to perform tasks around the Moon without human intervention.” MDA is tasked with establishing the technical requirements for the program, and RWC is developing the boom structures with MDA.

As a critical component of the Canadarm3 system, the boom structure is responsible for supporting the robotic arm’s operations, helping secure its stability and reliability over its 20+ year service life. The structure must meet structural and weight requirements, as well as tight dimensional tolerances, operate within wide temperature ranges and withstand radiation.

“Our collaboration with MDA builds upon our proven track record of delivering innovative solutions for the space industry,” says Jeremy Senne, head of RWC’s space market segment. “We are excited to contribute our expertise to this project, work alongside MDA to advance Canada’s space robotics capabilities, and support future deep space presence and exploration by mankind.”