Three axis thruster modulation

Aeronautics and astronautics – Spacecraft – Attitude control

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Details

244169, 364459, 364434, B64G 124

Patent

active

053101430

ABSTRACT:
The three axes thruster modulation (8) of the present invention accepts three axes of input torque commands or angular acceleration commands and generates thruster selection and thruster timing (40) information which is used to fire thrusters (48) for the purpose of spacecraft attitude control and velocity change maneuvers. The modulation logic (8) works in all three axes simultaneously and is suitable for use with an arbitrary thruster configuration, including a configuration in which individual thrusters or thruster groups do not produce torques about mutually orthogonal axes. After thruster selection and on-times have been determined, the modulation logic (8) uses this information to compute a best estimate of the actual rate change (42) which is then compared to the commanded rate change (44) to develop a residual unfired rate change. The residual unfired rate change is retained and fed forward for addition to the subsequent acceleration command in computing the commanded rate change for the subsequent sample period (10, 20, 30). As a result, all commanded rate changes will ultimately be fired even if the commanded rate change is below a minimum rate change achievable.

REFERENCES:
patent: 4567564 (1986-01-01), Bittner et al.
patent: 4599697 (1986-07-01), Chan
patent: 4725024 (1988-02-01), Vorlicek
patent: 4848706 (1989-07-01), Garg et al.
patent: 4961551 (1990-10-01), Rosen
patent: 5130931 (1992-07-01), Paluszek et al.
Vaeth, Compatibility of Impulse Modulation Techniques with Attitude Sensor Noise and Spacecraft Maneuvering, IEEE Trans. on Automatic Control, Jan. 1965, p.p. 67 et seq.

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