Patent ID: 8915474

Claim:
A deployment apparatus for a multi-paneled solar array comprising: first and second in-line panels pivotally connected together about a first in-line hinge axis for rotation between stowed and deployed positions; a first side panel pivotally connected to the first in-line panel about a first side hinge axis transverse to the first in-line hinge axis for rotation between the stowed and the deployed positions; a second side panel pivotally connected to the second in-line panel about a second side hinge axis transverse to the first in-line hinge axis for rotation between the stowed and the deployed positions, the second side hinge axis located opposite the first side hinge axis with respect to the first and second in-line panels; a first drive mechanism configured to passively move the first and second in-line panels from the stowed position to the deployed position; a first restraint mechanism configured to substantially restrain the second side panel with respect to the second in-line panel and to release the second side panel after the first drive mechanism has begun to move the first and second in-line panels into the deployed positions; a second drive mechanism configured to passively rotate the second side panel about the second side hinge axis, and a second restraint mechanism configured to substantially restrain the first side panel with respect to the first in-line panel and to release the first side panel for rotation about the first side hinge axis after the second side panel has rotated clear of the swept extended volume of the first side panel, wherein the second restraint mechanism is further configured to not restrain the first side panel with respect to the first in-line panel when the in-line panels are in the stowed position and to enter into a configuration that restrains the first side panel with respect to the first in-line panel while the first in-line panel and the second in-line panel are transitioning from the stowed position to the deployed position.