MS Mechanical Sciences MS Mech. Sci. 2191-916X Copernicus Publications Göttingen, Germany 10.5194/ms-4-381-2013 Monolithic 2 DOF fully compliant space pointing mechanism Merriam E. G. 1 Jones J. E. 2 Magleby S. P. 1 Howell L. L. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8132-8822 1 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA Marshall Space Flight Center, NASA, Huntsville, AL 35812, USA 02 12 2013 4 2 381 390 Copyright: © 2013 E. G. Merriam et al. 2013 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ This article is available from https://ms.copernicus.org/articles/4/381/2013/ms-4-381-2013.html The full text article is available as a PDF file from https://ms.copernicus.org/articles/4/381/2013/ms-4-381-2013.pdf

This paper describes the conception, modeling, and development of a fully compliant two-degree-of-freedom pointing mechanism for application in spacecraft thruster, antenna, or solar array systems. The design objectives and the advantages of a compliant solution are briefly discussed. Detailed design decisions to meet project objectives are described. Analytical and numerical models are developed and subsequently verified by prototype testing and measurements in several iterations. A final design of the 3-D printed titanium monolithic pointing mechanism is described in detail and its performance is measured.

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