The "rocker" joints were always one of the major issues with the Rocker Bogie designed for Mimas: since the entire weight of the rover relies on them, these particular pieces have to be extremely solid. The first design suffers from excessive stress, especially in the area of connection between the joint and the rover body. A deformation of <1mm was measured: this was not a big threat, however, the design has been revisited. The new rocker joint has a thicker structure in all directions, and the connection between the joint and the rover body is reinforced by a custom M8 metal flange. This helps better distribute the load on the joint. In addition, four threaded inserts have been added to make the rocker joint tube attachment stiffer.
- [Hours of work: 5]
- [People involved: Giorgio]
