Abstract
In future lunar, planetary or asteroid explorations, in-situ analysis of rock samples are strongly demanded to obtain many data from various aspects. For precise composition analysis, a sample surface should be smoothed. In this report, a surface shaver with a piezoelectric actuator is proposed and its machining performance in air is investigated. Shaving teeth are mounted at the ends of a lever mechanism. The device is pressed through four springs onto the specimen with a linear actuator. When a sinusoidal voltage of 50 Vp-p and an offset voltage of 25 V ware applied, the natural frequency was 556 Hz and the unloaded amplitude of shaving teeth were 0.77 mmp-p. Basalt samples were machined for 10 minutes in air. The surface roughness was small with an increase of the pressing force. However, the removal amount was smaller with an increase of the pressing force further. The surface roughness varied widely not only due to removal amount but also due to pores.
