DESARROLLO DE UNA APLICACIÓN INFORMÁTICA PARA EL DIMENSIONADO DE MECANISMOS DE DESPLIEGUE EN SATÉLITES ARTIFICIALES

Abstract

Artificial satellites must often deploy instruments once they are in orbit. As an incorrect deployment usually implies the loss of the satellite, the design of such mechanisms is of critical importance. For example, a failed or uncontrolled aerial deployment may produce excessive end stroke impact, which can either damage the structure, misalign components or changes in satellite attitude. The mechanisms devoted to deployment are usually composed of a preloaded spring (motor) in order to give the required torque for the aerial deployment, and a damper system to control the angular speed, avoiding high kinetic energies. Within this context, two computing applications have been developed in order to simulate the deployment of any specific aerial using different motors and dampers. The calculation provides information about the cinematic and dynamic behaviour of the deploy and classifies each particular combination of motor-damper according to ECSS Standards, which are compulsory for European Spatial Agency designs. Keywords: deployment mechanism, aerial, artificial satellite