Mobile GIS slewing crane lifts space telescope CHEOPS

As part of the "Cheops” mission to investigate planets outside the solar system, GIS AG was able to provide the University of Bern with a very special slewing crane for the test lab. This was specially designed for use in a clean room environment and lifts the 65 kg space tele-scope CHEOPS in a vacuum chamber. In this chamber space simulations are carried out in the temperature range from -80°C to + 160°C. The mobile base of the slewing crane, movable on rollers was manufactured as a welded frame construction made of stainless steel. Also a corrosion resistant GIS electric chain hoist with a lifting capacity of 200 kg serves as a hoist. This was fitted with a two-stage, frequency-controlled drive for precise positioning of the space telescope. The electric chain hoist is operated via a remote control. Predefined temperature cycles are tested in the vacuum chamber by CHEOPS engineers in a first phase with a struc-tural model (structural and thermal model), later with the space telescope. The deployment of the telescope in space is planned for the end of 2017.

A video camera, which was installed in the clean room at the University of Bern, shows how the CHEOPS team prepared the structural model of the telescope for testing in the vacuum chamber.

Link to video:

http://cheops.unibe.ch/de/cheops-im-test-an-der-uni-bern/