A groundbreaking innovation achieved by researchers affiliated with the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) will permit the more efficient delivery of “payloads” – such as telescopes, magnetometers, and remote sensing devices – into space.
Lt Col Robert A. Bettinger, an associate professor of aerospace engineering in AFIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, has been working with mechanical engineering research assistant Philip D. Smith – to develop an “articulating spacecraft chassis” based on the CubeSat form factor. Christian Conkle, a former Master of Science student at AFIT, also contributed to the work while pursuing his degree at the institute. Lt Col Bettinger, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Conkle recently received a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office related to discoveries achieved while conducting this work.
In this context, “chassis” refers to the satellite structure designed to hold a payload. Once a CubeSat satellite is fully integrated with payload and bus components, the vehicle is loaded into a dispenser, which is then integrated into the upper stage of a launch vehicle. Once in orbit, the dispenser ejects the satellite, allowing the payload to be used.
The problem that Lt Col Bettinger, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Conkle set out to address relates to the fact that it is not economically feasible to produce customized dispensers, as doing so would require significant (and prohibitively expensive) engineering work. Therefore, a satellite chassis must be manufactured to fit standardized dispenser sizes already available on the market. A CubeSat is built using a standard size of a single “Cube,” or “Unit” (“U”). A single U measures ten centimeters on all sides. Current CubeSat dispensers fit 1U, 3U, 6U, or 12U satellites. The requirement to adhere to these sizes, in turn, limits the size and shape of the payload a chassis can contain.
Lt Col Bettinger, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Conkle’s research has focused on broadening the versatility of the 6U model. Currently, the 6U satellite is organized into a 1 x 2 x 3 arrangement, which fits the size of existing dispensers. The necessity of adhering to this arrangement has posed challenges to the defense community. For example, longer telescopes with longer optical trains have different mission applications than shorter telescopes. However, to be launched into space in the current 6U chassis configuration, telescopes cannot be more than three “cubes” – or thirty centimeters – long. Placing a long but thin telescope into a larger 12U satellite might yield unused lateral space, which is also not ideal. Likewise, some types of sensors function more effectively when separated from one another, but the existing 6U configuration limits how far apart sensors may be placed.
The inventors’ innovation, however, allows the chassis to change configuration once it has been ejected from the dispenser. Functionally, the chassis splits in half and expands into a longer 1 x 1 x 6 configuration. This innovation renders the chassis far more versatile than before. If two halves of a telescope are loaded into the 1 x 2 x 3 chassis on the ground, for example, the two halves can join upon reaching orbit and thereby provide access to a payload twice as long as was previously possible in the 6U configuration. This achievement permits enhanced distance resolution and, therefore, a clearer picture of what is happening back on Earth. Sensors can also be placed further apart from each other on a longer chassis than on a shorter one, which, depending on the sensor type, could enhance the sensors’ capabilities. Additionally, the expansion also increases the surface area of a contained payload, which, if applicable, allows more sensors and/or solar panels – which provide the payload with power – to be placed on the surface than was previously possible.
Upon initial investigation, Lt Col Bettinger, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Conkle realized that there was no existing patent related to the technology they had developed, and they therefore applied to have the technology patented. In December 2025, their patent application was approved, and a patent was awarded.
The inventors noted that there is further work to be done to build upon these initial advancements. The team is actively pursuing new patent applications related to other innovations in the field of spacecraft chassis design.
Lt Col Bettinger, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Conkle’s patent application was facilitated by AFIT’s Office of Research and Technology Application (ORTA). Department of the Air Force (DAF) ORTAs protect DAF’s interests as related to new discoveries achieved in DAF research laboratories. DAF ORTAs work with DAF scientists and engineers to navigate the patent application and issuance process, ensuring that DAF’s intellectual property interests are secured. After patent issuance, many technologies are licensed to external entities for further development, and DAF ORTAs also facilitate this process.
United States Patent Office Patent #12,508,209