Mars Diamond Module - MDM01

thingiverse

An entry for the Makerbot Mars Base Challenge. The base builds upon a landing capsule which can deliver different payloads - mining equipment, rovers, food, escape pod, living quarters, laboratories etc. The living quarter / laboratory module folds into a diamond shape after the landing. The modules, moved together by a tractor after touchdown, connect by walkways. The inside of the cargo bay petals could be a good place for solar panels. The design is based upon Nasa research concerning the difficulty of slowing large objects down in the thin martian atmosphere combined with a diamond I made for a different project. I picked the Configuration X+ shape for the heat shield as described in the PDF "On Heatshield Shapes For Mars Entry Capsules" found here: http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20120004297.pdf Then I came by the SIAD-E, Supersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator, currently being tested and incorporated that into the design as well. The images show: the base with 5 living quarters, the capsule in the first stage of descent, 35 meter parachute deployed (not visible), SIAD-E deployed, landing gear deployed, touchdown, SIAD-E removed, cargo bay petals opened, diamond unfolded. Then there are three images of the model: finished print, painted and after my daughters suggestion a "by night" shot accomplished with the help of her Lego lights. Instructions I only had translucent blue filament for the print, and the borrowed Replicator 2 had some issues, so I had to sand, putty and paint the model to get the right colors. I use Tamiya Model Putty - it dries fast and sticks to plastic very well. The paint used was Tamiya TS spray paint. If you have perfectly tuned printer you should be able to print everything on the High setting in Makerware, choose white for the capsule cargo bay, black for the landing gear and heat shield. M y model used small brass tubes to build the landing gear, but I've added some struts that should be ok to print (not tested). The SIAD-E decelerator should be printed in orange, but I haven't had the time to test these prints - the deployed version has some inlet vents that could need to be printed separately. The original Rhino 3DM files are available as well as the STL versions. Print the diamond with single walls. To quote MakeALot from the Makerbot Operators Group: In Makerware, go into the "Make It" dialogue and select "Create Profile" name it "hollow" then edit the profile and set , "infillDensity": 0 , "numberOfShells": 1 , "roofThickness" : 0 , "floorThickness" : 0 Using these settings the diamond prints out beautifully, I did three in a row without any problems. The brass tubes used were bits & pieces found in my workshop so the sizes are perhaps not the most thought through: the short tube connecting the heat shield to the technical bay has a 4.7mm outer diameter and a 4mm inner diameter. The longer, sliding tube, connected to the landing feet has a 4mm outer diameter. Four 1mm brass tubes insert into the petals to allow them to pivot.