Rotating-unbalanced-mass devices and methods for scanning balloo

Details Rotating-unbalanced-mass devices and methods for scanning balloo Rotating-unbalanced-mass devices and methods for scanning balloo

1990-05-23

1992-07-14

Barefoot, Galen

Aeronautics and astronautics

Spacecraft

Spacecraft formation, orbit, or interplanetary path

74 61, 74 87, 343766, B64G 166

Patent

active

051296004

ABSTRACT:
A method and apparatus for scanning balloon-borne experiments, free-flying spacecraft, or gimballed experiments mounted on a space shuttle or space station, makes use of one or more rotating unbalanced mass devices for selectively generating circular, line, or raster scan patterns for the experiment line of sight. An auxiliary control system may also be used in combination with the rotating unbalanced mass device, for target acquisition, keeping the scan centered on the target, or for producing complementary motion for raster scanning. The rotating unbalanced mass makes use of a mass associated with a drive shaft, such mass having a center of gravity which is displaced from the drive shaft rotation axis. The drive shaft is driven with a substantially constant angular velocity, thereby resulting in relatively low power requirements since no acceleration or deceleration of the mass is generally involved during steady state operations. The resulting centrifugal force of the rotating unbalanced mass is used to generate desired reaction forces on the experiment or spacecraft to create a desired scan pattern for the experiment line of sight.

REFERENCES:
patent: 1116124 (1914-11-01), Rojahn
patent: 2200724 (1940-05-01), Robins
patent: 3625074 (1971-12-01), Waschulewski et al.
patent: 4041500 (1977-08-01), Lapp
patent: 4266434 (1981-05-01), Burns

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