Advanced Development and Fabrication at APL: Machines, Components, and Processes

Abstract

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) solves complex research, engineering, and analytical problems that present critical challenges to our nation. Its work requires collaboration across a broad realm of scientific domains and technologies, including manufacturing. APL has established modern fabrication techniques and processes for real-world applications, enabling fabrication of components for a diverse set of systems operating from the depths of the oceans to the farthest parts of the solar system. APL delivers high-quality, cutting-edge hardware by pairing state-of-the-art equipment with knowledgeable manufacturing personnel who directly interact with engineers, designers, and research scientists to achieve creative solutions. This synergy allows for rapid iteration and swift system integration. To highlight the impact of this approach, this article describes a few of APL’s critical manufacturing contributions: (1) the rapid redesign of components for the Didymos Reconnaissance and Asteroid Camera for Optical navigation (DRACO), the lone instrument in the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) payload; (2) the close collaboration of engineers, scientists, and fabricators on the Boundary Layer Transition (BOLT) hypersonic flight experiment; (3) the advantages of multiaxis turning for the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) feed horn; and (4) the use of additive manufacturing to produce novel solutions for fabricating the shielding components for instruments on the Europa Clipper and Martian Moons eXploration missions.