Development of the Advanced Regolith Ground Operations (ARGO) Test Bed – A Robotic Excavation and Construction Test Facility with Simulated Lunar Environments

Abstract

NASA’s Artemis Program is working towards developing a sustained presence on the Moon and, eventually, Mars. To achieve this goal, robotic excavation, site preparation, and construction technologies are under development to establish the capability to construct infrastructure such as launch/landing pads and radiation protection shelters. Technologies must be proven in simulated Lunar conditions prior to surface demonstration missions and eventual full-scale construction. To that end, the Relevant Environment Additive Construction Technology (REACT) Announcement of Collaboration Opportunities (ACO) project with AI Space Factory and the NASA Kennedy Space Center’s (KSC) Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Laboratory (known as Swamp Works) has developed the Advanced Regolith Ground Operations (ARGO) Test Bed. ARGO is intended to provide simulated lunar dirty thermal vacuum conditions for a wide variety of testing applications and can be adapted to accommodate new requirements. ARGO includes a ~1.47 m x 1.47 m x 1.18 m (58 in x 58 in x 46.5 in) vacuum chamber, a cryogenically cooled thermal shroud, a 4-axis robotic positioning system, various regolith bins, and a residual gas analysis system. For the REACT project, a pellet extruder, feed hopper, and heated 600 mm x 600 mm (23.6 in x 23.6 in) build plate have been installed on ARGO to advance the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of regolith-polymer composite Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) additive construction processes. The fourth axis (known as the E-axis) of the gantry allows for the attachment of both a pellet extruder and a regolith manipulation tool where the E-axis acts as a rotary motion axis. This paper will focus on the design and operational characteristics of the ARGO Test Bed in its FFF and regolith manipulation configurations. This paper also serves as a capability definition document to promote collaboration across industry, academia, other government entities, and NASA Centers.