It all began in 2016 when when NASA launched HP ZBook Workstations to the International Space Station (ISS).
About 120 ZBooks will be used to support NASA’ s mission operations and utilization objectives including sparing.
The Printer of this year’s operation
NASA made use of the HP OfficeJet 5740 Printer as a “Next Generation Printer” to replace the existing printing capability onboard the ISS. In response to this selection, HP developed a custom HP ENVY Zero-Gravity Printer for use in the ISS.
However, the printer is designed to be used on the international space station. In addition to its 3D printed components, it includes certain specificities that HP took care to respect so that NASA could use it wisely:
▪ Paper management in zero-G
▪ Flame retardant plastics
▪ Waste ink management in zero-G
▪ Glass removal
▪ Wired and wireless connectivity
▪ Printing in multiple orientations (0⁰, 90⁰.180⁰ & 270⁰ positions)
▪ Environmental Testing (EMI, Materials, Acoustics, Flammability, Off-gassing, Power Compatibility, etc.)
The zero-G requirements
According to the manufacturer, because of their unique nature, the zero-G requirements were quite difficult to meet and control.
However, thanks to creative re-engineering and the use of specialized materials, the HP ENVY Zero-Gravity Printer finally met all of NASA’s requirements.
The HP ENVY Zero-Gravity Printers are currently scheduled to launch to the ISS on the Space-X 14 rocket.
Notice is to be made that the International Space Station Partnership consists of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), CSA (Canadian Space Agency), ESA (European Space Agency), JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) and the RSA (Russian Federal Space Agency). This includes 15 countries: Canada, Japan, Russia, the United States, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
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