This silent film from NASA shows the 1-G training version of the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) at the “rockpile” at the Manned Space Center in Houston, Texas. The 1-G LRV trainer was built by GM’s Delco Electronics Division in Santa Barbara. Whereas the LRV was designed to operate on the lunar surface having % the gravity of Earth, the 1-G trainer had to, in effect, be reverse-engineered to withstand six times its originally designed load and stress parameters, and to take into account other factors.
The LRV was a four-wheeled, battery powered “dune buggy” taken to the moon on Apollo missions 15, 16, and 17. The LRV was stowed on the descent stage of the Lunar Module and deployed upon arrival at the lunar surface. Actually a “wheeled spacecraft,” it was operated with a spacecraft “stick” rather than a steering wheel and could move forward and backward. The design included a communications antenna and a television camera. Each wheel had a 1/4-horsepower electric motor. The LRV could reach speeds of up to 12 miles per hour and carry 1000 pounds (2 astronauts and their equipment).
LRVs were used for greater surface mobility during the Apollo J-class missions, Apollo 15, Apollo 16, and Apollo 17. The rover was first used on 31 July 1971, during the Apollo 15 mission. This greatly expanded the range of the lunar explorers. Previous teams of astronauts were restricted to short walking distances around the landing site due to the bulky space suit equipment required to sustain life in the lunar environment. The range, however, was operationally restricted to remain within walking distance of the lunar module, in case the rover broke down at any point.[13] The rovers were designed with a top speed of about 8 mph (13 km/h), although Eugene Cernan recorded a maximum speed of 11.2 mph (18.0 km/h), giving him the (unofficial) lunar land-speed record.
The LRV was developed in only 17 months and performed all its functions on the Moon with no major anomalies. Scientist-astronaut Harrison Schmitt of Apollo 17 said, “The Lunar Rover proved to be the reliable, safe and flexible lunar exploration vehicle we expected it to be. Without it, the major scientific discoveries of Apollo 15, 16, and 17 would not have been possible; and our current understanding of lunar evolution would not have been possible.”
Some of the other differences you may note with the LRV 1-G and the actual LRV… aluminum wheel rim was configured to accommodate pneumatic tires. GM engineered heavy duty wire mesh wheels for the 1-G trainer, but these were rarely used. The traction drive for each wheel used 34 VDC motors and a three-stage planetary gearbox instead of harmonic drive; these traction drives were not hermetically sealed. Specific thermal sensors were used on the gearbox to provide overheating indicators on the control panel. Wheel decoupling was simulated on the 1-G trainer to duplicate the LRV-to-crew interface. To properly brake the vehicle, GM designed hydraulically-actuated disc brakes for each wheel which were controlled through the hand controller. Torsion bars were installed only on the lower control arms.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
