21st European Space Mechanisms
and Tribology Symposium
Organised by EPFL,
CSEM and Almatech
24th – 26th September, 2025

Symposium Agenda

Day	Morning Sessions	Afternoon Sessions
Day 1	Session 1 – Components (10:45)	New Dev 1 – New Developments Session 1 (13:30)
		Session 2 – Tribology 1 (14:10)
		Session 3 – Testing (16:00)
		Posters – Poster Session (17:00)
Day 2	Session 4 – Mechanisms 1 (08:20)	New Dev 2 – New Developments Session 2 (13:30)
	Session 5 – Mechanisms 2 (10:50)	Session 6 – Tribology 2 (14:10)
		Session 7 – LISA Mechanisms (16:20)
		New Dev 3 – New Developments Session 3 (17:20)
Day 3	Session 8 – Mechanisms 3 (08:40)
	Session 9 – Moon and Planetary Exploration (11:10)

	DAY-0: Tuesday 23rd September, 2025
Time	Paper Title	Author / Session Chair	Affiliation
16h00 – 18h00	Registration
	DAY-1: Wednesday 24th September, 2025
Time	Paper Title	Author / Session Chair	Affiliation	Country Code	Download Link
08h00 – 18h00	Registration
07h15 – 08h00	Presenters’ breakfast (including authors’ preparation)
	Welcome and Introduction
09:00	Welcome, general info, Programme	Gilles Feusier	EPFL
		Lionel Gaillard	ESA
	Head of Swiss Space Office	Renato Krpoun
09h45	Directeur du Service de la promotion de la conomie et de l’innovation, canton de Vaud	Raphael Conz	Canton de Vaud
	Welcome by host organisations	Edouard Bugnion	EPFL
		Steve Lecomte	CSEM
		Fabrice Rottmeier	Almatech
10:20	25 min Coffee Break			Top
	Session 1: Components	Bernd Strube	OHB
10h45	Design and Manufacturing considerations for spur gears. ÿSome lessons Learned from 3 different gears train development.	Alain Blanc	ESA ESTEC	NLD
11h05	Design of a High Power 1064 nm Fiber Coupled Optical Switch for Space Applications	Yves Ruffieux	CSEM	CHE
11h25	Development of a industrialized mid-size Rotary Actuator for Extended Lifetime in New Space	Marcus Engel & Iker Sainz	Harmonic Drive	ESP/DEU
11h45	Design of a Flexure-based Constant-Velocity Joint Optimized for High Axial Loads	Florent Cosandier	EPFL	CHE
12h05	Electro-Active Polymer (EAP) Actuator and Compliant Mechanism Design for Space Applications	Guzm n Borque Gallego	CSEM	CHE
12h30	60 min Lunch Break			Top
	New Development Session 1	Pierre-Emmanuel Martinez	CNES
13h30	New Development Session 1 (40 min)			New Dev. 1
	Session 2: Tribology 1	Alvaro Pascual	ESA
14h10	Great new grease, but can I use it ? Guidelines for Qualification of New Fluid Lubricants	Simon Lewis	ESTL	GBR
14h30	Development of Next Generation Solid Lubricants	Michael Buttery	ESTL	GBR
14h50	Lubrication by self-assembled multilayer. New avenue for low cost lubrication alternative to MoS2	Guillaume Colas	FEMTO-ST	FRA
15h10	Hydrodynamic Bearings for Space Mechanisms	Noemy Scheidegger	nanoSPACE	CHE
15h30	30 min Coffee Break			Top
	Session 3: Testing	Lisa Salamin	CSEM
16h00	Free-Floating Validation of LARIS Robotic Gripper for Satellite Capture	Lukasz Kozlowski	PIAP Space	POL
16h20	The Sentinel-5 UVNS TVAC Rotation System: Lessons learned from a challenging out of scope use	Cesar Toussaint	APCO	CHE
16h40	Detailed Mechanical Design of a Robotic Gravity Offloading System for Spacecraft Appendage Deployment Testing	Charles Lambelet	Beyond Gravity	CHE
	Poster Session	Michael Buttery	ESTL
17h00	Poster Session (40 min)			Posters
17h40	Invited Talk: Jean-Fran‡ois Clervoy (ESA and CNES Astronaut), Claude Nicollier (ESA Astronaut)
19h00 – 21h00	Welcome Reception. In the Conference & Exhibition Area			Top
	DAY-2: Thursday 25th September, 2025
Time	Paper Title	Author / Session Chair	Affiliation
08h00 – 18h00	Registration
07h15 – 08h00	Presenters’ breakfast (including authors’ preparation)
	Session 4: Mechanisms 1	Lionel Kiener	CSEM
08h20	3-axis Stabilization System for Stereo Cameras of Future Exploration Rovers	Stefano Nebuloni	Almatech	CHE
08h40	Spin it up! Some less common torque effects in reaction wheels	Sebastian Brunner	ESA ESTEC	NLD
09h00	Experimental Validation Of A Semi-Active Hexapod Platform For High-Performance Micro-Vibration Isolation	Christopher Willet	ESA ESTEC	NLD
09h20	Design, development and testing of CHIME M4 Refocusing Mechanism	Itziar Losa	Sener	ESP
09h40	Design, development and testing of a precision pointing mechanism for laser communication and imaging applications	Matija Brumat	General Atomics Synopta	CHE
10h00	Nanoboom: Development of a modular and compact self-deployable mast for space applications	Eric Poulain	COMAT	FRA
10h20	30 min Coffee Break			Top
	Session 5: Mechanisms 2	Simon Henein	EPFL
10h50	Compliant Mechanisms made by Additive Manufacturing: the Good, the Bad and the Lessons Learned	Lionel Kiener	CSEM	CHE
11h10	Intersatellite Separation Mechanism for Probe B2 as part of the ESA COMET Interceptor mission. Qualification functional testing of the separation mechanism	Janusz Grzybowski	Sener	POL
11h30	The doors of the Extreme-UV Imager onboard Solar Orbiter: from design to flight	Jean-Yves Plesseria	Centre Spatial de Liege	BEL
11h50	Development, Stratospheric Balloon Flight Testing, and Post-Flight Failure Analysis of a Motorised Sail Membrane Deployment and Spin-Tensioning System	Gil Barbosa Ribeiro	Lift Me Off	GBR
12h10	A modular 2-axis antenna mechanism for LEO, MEO and deep-space interplanetary communication : design, analysis, manufacturing, assembly, integration and testing	Boris Halter	Beyond Gravity	CHE
12h30	60 min Lunch Break			Top
	New Development Session 2	Adrien Moraine	Airbus (Toulouse)
13h30	New Development Session 2 (40 min)			New Dev. 2
	Session 6: Tribology 2	Jonathan Wood	LMCO
14h10	Lubrication for deployment without heating, results from testing towards bearings and gears for large deployable antennas (LDA) ‘A3LUB2’	Andreas Merstallinger	AAC	AUT
14h30	Post Test Inspection of Lubricants. Guidelines and Lessons Learnt	Michael Buttery	ESTL	GBR
14h50	Labyrinth seal design for enhanced sealing of evaporated lubricant molecules in space mechanisms	Josef Pouzar	Brno University of Technology	CZE
15h10	Extreme fatigue life and wear reduction capabilities of Ni-based Bulk Metallic glass	Guillaume Colas	Universit‚ Marie et Louis Pasteur	FRA
15h30	Novel and PFAS-free lubricants based on Ionic Liquids	Fabian Schler	Materiales	DEU
15h50	30 min Coffee Break
	Session 7: LISA mechanisms	Adam Dabrowski	Astronika
16h20	Development of the LISA Optical Assembly Tracking Mechanism	Jorge Mugica	Sener	ESP
16h40	LISA Optical Assembly Tracking Mechanism ? Results of Technology Development	Tim Tattusch	OHB	DEU
17h00	Development of an ultra-low vibration actuator for LISA APM	Mateusz Krakowczyk	Sener	POL
	New Development Session 3	Raphael Stellio	TAS
17h20	New Development Session 3 (40 min)			New Dev. 3
18h00	Visit of the Olympic Museum
19h15 – 22h30	Gala dinner in the restaurant of the Olympic Museum			Top
	DAY-3: Friday 26th September, 2025
Time	Paper Title	Author / Session Chair	Affiliation
08h00 – 12h30	Registration
07h30 – 08h15	Presenters’ breakfast (including authors’ preparation)
	Session 8: Mechanisms 3	Philipp Oetershagen	Beyond Gravity
08h40	Development of a Rotary Actuator with two stage anti-backlash gear train for PLATO Antenna Pointing Mechanism	Adam Tvaruzka	Kongsberg	NLD/NOR
09h00	Development and Testing of a Passive Wire-Driven Deployment Mechanism for Telescopic Optical Baffles in Space Applications	Annalisa Tresoldi	The University of Auckland	NZL
09h20	Modeling, Design and Testing of Reusable Launcher Landing Leg Prototype for ESA THEMIS Demonstrator T1H	Theo Grosgurin	Almatech	CHE
09h40	3D-Printed NiTi for Space Actuators	Gabriel Paciotti	HES-SO	CHE
10h00	Bearings for Extreme Environments NiTi-HF as a Premium Materal for Miniature Ball Bearings	Christoph Bayer	Gebr. Reinfurt GmbH & Co.KG	DEU
10h20	Detumbler: Making active debris removal a reality now	Adrien Moraine	Airbus	FRA
10h40	30 min Coffee Break			Top
	Session 9: Moon and Planetary Exploration	Jorge Vazquez	Sener
11h10	Development of a Shape Memory Alloy hinge to deploy the Solar Array for the IDEFIX Rover on the MMX mission to Phobos	Frans Ijpelaan	CNES	FRA
11h30	Revision of the ExoMars – Rosalind Franklin Mission from the perspective of a space mechanism	Adam Dabrowski	Astronika	POL
11h50	Demonstration of a new dust resilient thermal shutter for Lunar Applications	Olly Poyntz-Wright	ESR Space	GBR
12h10	Chandrayaan-3 Lunar Rover Hold Down Release Mechanism. Lessons Learnt during Assembly and Testing	Shamrao Garur	U R Rao Satellite Centre	IND
	Closing Remarks
12h30	Closing remarks, symposium summary
	AMS 2026 + ESMATS 2027 Announcements
	Best Paper Award Presentation
12h45	LUNCH			Top
14h00	Visit of EPFL, including Almatech and CSEM Exhibition

Poster Session Posters
Paper Title	Presenter	Company	Country	Download Link
Development of a Beam Steering Mirror with high pointing stability and resolution	Peter Spanoudakis	CSEM	CHE
Development of Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) Gimbal Actuator for Europa Imaging System (EIS)	Ruben Nalbandian	Moog	USA
Development and qualification of an Ultra Flat, Self-resetting, Low-shock and lightweight release and deployment mechanism	Florian Fouch‚	Nimesis	FRA
The Vertical Lunar Regolith Conveyor (VLRC) In-Space Experiment	Beverly Kemmerer	NASA
Beyond the Contradiction: High Rotating Mass and Performance & Life in Earth Observation Missions	Christian Hehr	Airbus	DEU
UNIKA – novel tensioning device for use in cleanrooms	Richard Hynek	Spacerace	CZE
Experimental Validation of Data-driven Control Design Methods for Hybrid Microvibration Damping Platform	Elias Klauser	CSEM	CHE
Towards a lunar regolith sampling system using electrostatic forces	Serena Pirrone	ESRIC	LUX
Investigation of the Chemical Design of Lubricant Additives for Space Applications Using Deep Neural Network and Explainable Artificial Intelligence	Takashi Yokoyama	JAXA	JPN
SAFRAN Electronics & Defense new developments in space stepper motors	Cyril Trial	SAFRAN Electronics & Defense	FRA
A new MoS2 Coating for Dry Running Bearings in Vacuum and Space	Beate Bergrath	CEROBEAR	DEU
Enhanced Microvibration Susceptibility Characterisation Testing Equipment	Guzm n Borque Gallego	CSEM	CHE
Design and Operation of a CubeSat Based Tribometer	Dhanushka Amaradasa	University of Central Lancashire	GBR
Development of the STA End-Effector for MSR mission	I¤igo Sard	AVS Added Value Solutions	ESP
Design and testing challenges for space piezoelectric pointing mechanisms as mirror mass increases	Fran‡ois Barillot	CEDRAT	FRA
InSPoC-1/B1 Grappling and Docking Interface Design and Breadboard Tests	Fabio Porcari	OHB Italia	ITA
Design and flight qualification of a worm gear pointing mirror mechanism for the Multispectral Infrared-Red Molecules and Ices Sensor (MIRMIS) instrument.	Rory Evans	University of Oxford
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New Developments’ Sessions Each new development presenter will be given 5 minutes to pitch their ideas – no questions.
Session	Paper Title	Presenter	Company	Country Code	Download Link
New Dev. 1	50kW Elevated Lunar Solar Array System Using an Origami-Inspired Reverse-Action Pyramid Hinge Array	Alexander Gendell	Folditure	USA
	Automated Workflow for the Design of Compliant Mechanisms Unlocking the Full Potential of Functional Additive Manufacturing	Guilain Lang	CSEM	CHE
	Design and Testing of a Thruster Pointing Mechanism (TPM-250) for Deep Space and IOS Nanosats	Emilia Wegrzyn	AVS UK	GBR
	Development of solid lubricant film with nano-molybdenum disulfide for moon environments	Kohei Kawamura	Kawamura Research Laboratories	JPN
New Dev. 2	A dust-tolerant slip ring for lunar rover wheel-mounted sensors	Rok Sesko	Technical University of Munich	DEU
	Damping of flexure blades based on bi-material additive manufacturing: Design for space and numerical model correlation	Lisa Salamin	CSEM	CHE
	Qualification of SARA: a compact, cost-effective, and modular Solar Array Drive Assembly for small satellites	Michal Grendysz	Revolv Space	ITA
	Advanced multi-scale composites for space environment applications	Cayetano Espejo Conesa	University of Leeds	GBR
	Space Mechanisms for Nuclear Systems: Pioneering the Future of Space Exploration	Borja Pozo Larrocha	ESA	NLD
New Dev. 3	The one-axis scan MIRS system	Laurent Ropert	ISP System	FRA
	Design, development and qualification of Fixed Dual-stage Hold-down and Release Mechanism for double panels antenna wings	Giulio Adone	Thales Alenia Space	ITA
	Achieving up to a tenth of a millinewton micro-vibration measurement resolution with Kistler?s latest piezoelectric crystal (PiezoStar© KI80), charge amplifier and advanced isolation techniques	Ayoub Bounouara	Kistler Instrumente	CHE
	Design and qualification challenges of a SADM using slipring technology	Adrien Guignabert	COMAT	FRA
	Beyond Graphene: Computational screening of 2D Materials for low-friction applications	Matteo Valderrama	Imperial College London	GBR
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