Flight model of MIDAS piezo scanning mechanism

The flight model of the piezo scanning mechanism produced by Cedrat Technologies and developed to ESA for integration into the MIDAS instrument for the Rosetta spacecraft. The hearth of MIDAS is the scanning mechanism that is build with Cedrat Technologies amplified piezo actuators. Eight APA50S are arranged to provide a travel motion of 100 µm along the X and Y directions. The Z-axis is a customised parallel pre-stressed actuator which provides a stroke of 8 µm. To protect the scanner against the high vibrations during launch, a special locking mechanism had to be developed and qualified. The whole mechanism includes 100 parts and weights less than 500 grams.