CN117842384A - Satellite hinge unfolding device - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a satellite hinge unfolding device, which comprises a hinge module connected with a fixed side and a movable side of a satellite structure. The hinge module comprises a hinge fixed end connected with the fixed side of the satellite structure and a hinge movable end connected with the movable side of the satellite structure and rotationally connected with the hinge fixed end. Under the condition that the movable end of the hinge rotates to a preset angle, the sliding pin arranged in the fixed end of the hinge pops up towards the direction of the movable end of the hinge, the movable end of the hinge is prevented from rebounding in a mode that the end part of the sliding pin stretches into a bayonet of a turntable arranged on the movable end of the hinge, and the limiting screw arranged on the movable end of the hinge prevents the movable end of the hinge from continuing to rotate in a mode that the limiting screw is abutted with the fixed end of the hinge. According to the satellite hinge unfolding device, the functions of preventing the rebound and excessive rotation of the movable end of the hinge are respectively realized by arranging the sliding pin and the limiting screw, the self-locking fault tolerance is improved, and the problem that the sliding pin cannot be ejected in time and the self-locking fails due to the fact that the satellite structure is unfolded too fast is solved.

Description

Satellite hinge unfolding device

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of satellite unfolding, in particular to a satellite hinge unfolding device.

Background

Satellite structures are increasingly facing the need for polytypic designs, which in turn contradict the limited carrying capacity and capacity by adopting a variety of reasonably spatially-expanded structures. A great deal of research work is carried out at home and abroad, a plurality of achievements are achieved, and various antenna unfolding structural forms such as winding rib antennas, radial rib antennas, loop column antennas, unit frame antennas and the like are formed.

At present, a plurality of research institutions and universities also develop the research of satellite antenna unfolding technology in China, the researched antenna structure types are concentrated on radial rib antennas and unit frame antennas, and most of unfolding mechanism products on the market at present have relatively miniaturized volume, but the overall unfolding mechanism cost is higher or the experiment development is more difficult due to a series of problems such as material specificity and the like. The antenna unfolding structure with simple structure and low cost is difficult to find in the existing products.

In the prior art, as in the patent document with the publication number CN215818040U, a hinge for unfolding and self-locking a solar cell sailboard is proposed, and the hinge can lock the unfolding sailboard of a satellite, but the self-locking is realized by relying on a lock tongue on a female hinge and a lock hole on a male hinge, and the sizes of the lock hole and the lock tongue are smaller, once the male hinge and the female hinge are slightly misplaced due to external interference and other factors, or the rotation speed of the male hinge or the female hinge is higher, the lock tongue is very easy to be incapable of being matched with the lock hole normally or the lock tongue is not capable of being clamped into the lock hole in time. The above factors not only can make the hinge lose the locking function of preventing the rebound of the female hinge or the male hinge, but also lose the function of preventing the excessive rotation of the female hinge or the male hinge, and the structural stability is poor. In addition, because the mutual matching of the lock tongue and the lock hole is the only locking mode in the hinge, the public hinge which is subjected to external interference and generates forward or reverse rotation trend can apply shearing force in the two directions perpendicular to the extending direction of the lock tongue to the lock tongue, and the alternating repeated change of the shearing force direction is extremely easy to cause metal fatigue damage, so that the lock tongue is broken and the locking of the hinge is invalid.

In the prior art, as disclosed in patent document with publication number CN113895658A, a satellite sailboard unfolding mechanism and a microsatellite are proposed, where the satellite sailboard unfolding mechanism includes: the fixed hinge is connected with the satellite body; the rotating hinge comprises a first hinge part and a connecting part connected with the first hinge part, the first hinge part is hinged with the fixed hinge, and the connecting part is connected with a satellite sailboard; the first fixing piece is arranged on the surface of the rotary hinge; the second fixing piece is arranged on the surface of the fixing hinge; one end of the driving piece is connected with the first fixing piece, and the other end of the driving piece is connected with the second fixing piece. This satellite sailboard expansion mechanism has utilized the limit baffle who sets up on the fixed hinge to carry out spacingly to the position of first articulated portion, and then can block to rotate the hinge and further rotate, but because this limit baffle sets up the position and has crisscross overlapping in the space with the setting position of driving piece, the unexpected condition that the gap block between the spring coil in the driving piece appears on limit baffle in the rotation hinge expansion in-process because of expansion mechanism self rocks or the interference of external condition probably appears to influence the normal deformation of driving piece, and then lead to satellite sailboard expansion failure or appear the problem that the driving piece damaged.

Furthermore, there are differences in one aspect due to understanding to those skilled in the art; on the other hand, since the applicant has studied a lot of documents and patents while making the present invention, the text is not limited to details and contents of all but it is by no means the present invention does not have these prior art features, but the present invention has all the prior art features, and the applicant remains in the background art to which the right of the related prior art is added.

Disclosure of Invention

Aiming at the defects of the prior art, the invention provides a satellite hinge unfolding device, in particular to a satellite hinge unfolding device capable of being quickly self-locked, and aims to solve one or more technical problems in the prior art.

In order to realize rapid unfolding and storage of a space structure, a plurality of technical schemes for applying an unfolding mechanism to space equipment have appeared in the prior art. For example, patent document with publication number CN105673677a discloses a solar cell sailboard unfolding locking mechanism, wherein a fixed hinge is connected with a rotating shaft through an upper fixed shaft sleeve and a lower fixed shaft sleeve, a movable hinge is hinged with the rotating shaft through an upper movable shaft sleeve and a lower movable shaft sleeve, the lower end of the upper movable shaft sleeve is sequentially provided with a lock tongue and a locking pressure spring which are sleeved on the rotating shaft, the lower end of the locking pressure spring is abutted with a supporting plate connected with the fixed hinge, the lock tongue is provided with a locking pin, the lower end of the upper movable shaft sleeve is provided with a sliding groove, and the bottom of the sliding groove is provided with a locking groove; the torsion spring is sleeved at the lower end of the rotating shaft, two ends of the torsion spring are respectively connected with the fixed hinge and the solar cell sailboard, and the upper end and the lower end of the torsion spring are respectively limited in the axial direction through a lower fixed shaft sleeve of the fixed hinge and a limiting plate connected with the fixed hinge. According to the technical scheme, the driving torsion spring of the sailboard unfolding part and the locking pressure spring of the sailboard locking part are coaxially arranged on the rotating shaft, and the locking angle of the sailboard unfolding is adjusted by changing the angle of the sliding groove at the end part of the movable hinge. However, in this technical solution, the movement direction of the locking pin structure for performing the sailboard locking after the sailboard is unfolded is parallel to the rotation axis of the battery sailboard, and the specific locking position thereof needs to be determined according to the positional relationship between the locking pin and the inclined plane of the chute at the lower end of the upper movable shaft sleeve, and the locking position cannot be controlled according to the specific angle of the unfolding component. Further, complicated power source facilities such as motor drive, hydraulic drive, pneumatic drive commonly used in the satellite expansion mechanism among the prior art provide expansion power, and volume and weight increase are more, are unfavorable for expansion mechanism's miniaturization, and small-size satellite expansion mechanism is because locking device size is less, adopts the simple mechanical structure that utilizes elastic force to spring the spring bolt into corresponding lockhole to realize hinge auto-lock generally, and this kind of locking mode receives external environment interference influence great, once take place tiny structure dislocation then can lead to expansion mechanism to lose self-locking ability, structural stability is not good, even also can be because of expansion speed is too fast, lead to the spring bolt can not in time block into the lockhole, and then lead to the circumstances of auto-lock failure, this expansion speed that limits small-size satellite expansion structure.

Therefore, the present invention provides a satellite hinge unfolding device for solving the above-mentioned technical problems, which comprises a hinge module connected with a fixed side and a movable side of a satellite structure, wherein the hinge module comprises a hinge fixed end connected with the fixed side of the satellite structure and a hinge movable end connected with the movable side of the satellite structure and rotatably connected with the hinge fixed end. Under the condition that the movable end of the hinge rotates to a preset angle, the sliding pin arranged in the fixed end of the hinge pops up towards the direction of the movable end of the hinge, the movable end of the hinge is prevented from rebounding in a mode that the end of the sliding pin stretches into a bayonet arranged on a turntable of the movable end of the hinge, and the limiting screw arranged on the movable end of the hinge prevents the movable end of the hinge from continuing to rotate in a mode that the limiting screw is abutted with the fixed end of the hinge. According to the hinge unfolding device, through the double arrangement of the sliding pin and the limiting screw, the function of preventing the rebound of the movable end of the hinge and the function of preventing the excessive rotation of the movable end of the hinge of the unfolding device are respectively realized, and the combination of the sliding pin and the limiting screw jointly meets the functional requirement of self-locking. The setting of the limit screw can also avoid the problem that the sliding pin cannot pop out in time to cause locking failure because the rotating speed of the movable end of the hinge is faster.

According to the satellite structure, the self-locking requirement is split, and the respective burden of the two components is reduced by arranging the sliding pin for preventing the rebound of the movable end of the hinge and the limiting screw for preventing the excessive rotation of the movable end of the hinge, so that the service life of the unfolding device is prolonged. Meanwhile, the function split enables the sliding pin and the like locking components to be arranged on one surface of the fixed end of the hinge, which is away from the fixed side of the satellite structure, so that the sliding pin and the like locking components have wider arrangement space on the basis that normal unfolding of the satellite structure is not affected, and the sliding pin and the like locking components can be more freely selected to be arranged according to actual conditions. Through the size of suitably increasing locking subassembly, not only can promote its fault-tolerant ability, can not lose the locking ability because of the tiny structure dislocation that factors such as external interference lead to, can also promote the structural strength of subassembly self with the help of bigger size to obtain stronger resistance to deformation.

According to a preferred embodiment, the hinge fixed end and the hinge movable end are rotatably connected by a rotation module, the rotation module comprises a pin shaft, the pin shaft connects the hinge fixed end and the hinge movable end in a manner of penetrating through a fixed end mounting hole arranged on the hinge fixed end and a movable end mounting hole arranged on the hinge movable end, and the hinge movable end can perform overturning movement by taking the pin shaft as a rotation shaft. The hinge movable end and the hinge fixed end are connected through the pin shaft, and the pin shaft simultaneously penetrates through the movable end mounting hole and the fixed end mounting hole, so that the hinge movable end takes the pin shaft as a rotating shaft and can do rotary motion relative to the hinge fixed end, and the separation of the fixed side and the movable side of the satellite structure is realized.

According to a preferred embodiment, the hinge fixing end is provided with a fixing end mounting hole, the outer wall surface of the fixing end mounting hole comprises an arc surface and a flat surface which are connected with each other, the head of the limit screw prevents the hinge movable end from rotating excessively in a manner of contacting with the flat surface of the fixing end mounting hole, and the fixing end mounting hole is configured to change the respective occupation proportion of the arc surface and the flat surface in the outer wall surface according to the maximum unfolding angle required by the movable side of the satellite structure.

Through setting part of the side wall of the fixed end mounting hole to be a flat surface, when the hinge movable end rotates to a preset angle, the plane where the head of the limit screw arranged on the hinge movable end is parallel to and is in butt joint with the flat surface, so that the hinge movable end is prevented from continuing to rotate, namely, the maximum rotation angle of the hinge movable end can be limited by the cooperation of the limit screw and the flat side wall of the fixed end mounting hole. By extending the flat surface on the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole, the number of parts additionally arranged for preventing the hinge movable end from over-rotating is reduced, the number of parts of the whole device is optimized, and the compactness and reliability of the unfolding device are improved. In addition, in order to prevent the hinge movable end from excessively rotating, the head of the limit screw is in parallel abutting connection with the outer wall surface of the corresponding fixed end mounting hole, the property of the acting force applied to the limit screw by the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole in the process is compression force, and the locking component in the prior art such as CN215818040U selects a form that the lock tongue is matched with the lock hole, which means that the property of the acting force applied to the lock tongue by the lock hole is shear force. Therefore, the invention can convert the shearing force which is applied to the lock tongue and is perpendicular to the extending direction of the lock tongue into the compression force which is applied to the head of the limit screw and is identical to the extending direction of the limit screw, and under the condition that the materials of the limit screw and the lock tongue are identical, the capacity of resisting compression deformation is stronger than the capacity of resisting shearing deformation, thereby prolonging the service life and the stability of the locking component.

According to a preferred embodiment, the two ends of the pin shaft are provided with bearings, the bearings are positioned in the fixed end mounting holes, the inner sides of the two bearings opposite to each other are provided with check rings in a fitting mode, and the outer sides of the bearings on one side of the pin shaft are provided with lock nuts. Technical solutions for providing unfolding power by means of elastic potential energy stored by torsion spring structures already exist in the prior art. For example, patent document with publication number CN215818040U discloses a hinge for unfolding self-locking of solar cell sailboard, the hinge comprises a male hinge and a female hinge rotationally connected with the male hinge through a rotating shaft, a torsion spring is sleeved on the rotating shaft, two ends of the torsion spring respectively act on the male hinge and the female hinge, an arc chute taking the axis of the rotating shaft as the center of a circle and a lock hole communicated with the arc chute are arranged on the male hinge, a lock tongue is elastically connected on the female hinge, the lock tongue can slide in the arc chute, and the lock tongue can be inserted into the lock hole to realize self-locking of the hinge in an unfolding state. According to the technical scheme, the torsion spring is used as a power source, the satellite is in a furled state under the action of the external compressing mechanism in the ground and launching process, the torsion spring of the hinge is in a force storage state, and when the sailboard is unfolded to a preset angle, the spring force provided by the elastic piece enables the lock tongue to be clamped into the lock hole of the male hinge, so that the locking of the unfolding state of the sailboard is completed. However, in this technical solution, two sets of torsion springs with opposite rotation directions need to be simultaneously set as power sources of the unwinding mechanism, and the rotation limiting process of the torsion springs cannot be simultaneously realized through a single locking mechanism. Compared with the prior art, the invention uses a single torsion spring structure to realize the unfolding of the hinge structure on the basis of arranging the bearing structure. Based on the above-mentioned distinguishing technical features, the technical problems to be solved by the present invention may include: how to reduce the elastic potential energy of the torsion spring under the condition of meeting the unfolding acting force of the hinge structure. Specifically, the bearing can reduce friction between the pin shaft and the fixed end mounting hole and reduce abrasion between the pin shaft and the fixed end mounting hole; the arrangement of the bearing retainer ring and the locking nut can limit the axial displacement of the bearing, and the bearing is prevented from slipping in the unfolding process of the movable end of the hinge.

According to a preferred embodiment, a partial region of the circumferential side wall of the movable end mounting hole is provided with a threaded hole penetrating the wall of the movable end mounting hole, and a set screw is fitted into the threaded hole and connected to the side wall of the pin shaft, so that the movable end of the hinge and the pin shaft rotate synchronously. Compared with the prior art, the pin shaft can synchronously rotate along with the hinge structure. Based on the above-mentioned distinguishing technical features, the technical problems to be solved by the present invention may include: how to improve stability during hinge deployment. Specifically, the setting screw can realize the rotation synchronization of the movable end of the hinge and the pin shaft, so that the jumping degree of the movable pin shaft during installation can be reduced, the stability of the whole structure in the rotation process is improved, and the abrasion caused by friction and impact due to mismatching of rotating speeds can be reduced.

According to a preferred embodiment, the hinge fixing end is provided with a hollow circular groove, one end of the hollow circular groove, which is far away from the pin shaft, is closed by a spring flange, one end, which is close to the pin shaft, is open, the sliding pin is arranged in the hollow circular groove, and one end, which is close to the spring flange, of the sliding pin is provided with a pressure spring. Compared with the prior art, the hinge fixing end is provided with the hollow circular groove which can limit the rotation of the hinge fixing end. Based on the above-mentioned distinguishing technical features, the technical problems to be solved by the present invention may include: how to prevent rebound of the hinge active end of the deployment device. Specifically, the hollow circular groove provides a containing space for the sliding pin, and can pop up under the cooperation of the pressure spring and the spring flange, and the rebound of the movable end of the hinge is prevented by extending the end part of the sliding pin into the bayonet on the turntable, so that the locking function of the unfolding device is realized.

According to a preferred embodiment, the side of the sliding pin, which is close to the movable end of the hinge, is provided with a sliding block, and the side of the sliding block, which is in contact with the fixed end of the hinge, is smooth. The sliding pin is contacted with the surface of the fixed end of the hinge by virtue of the sliding block, so that friction between the sliding pin and the surface of the fixed end of the hinge in the ejecting process of the sliding pin is reduced, and the ejecting speed of the sliding pin is improved.

According to a preferred embodiment, the rotary module further comprises a torsion spring, the spiral coil of the torsion spring is sleeved on the pin shaft, and one of the two torsion arms, extending to two sides, of the coil is in contact with the surface of the fixed end of the hinge, and the other torsion arm is in contact with the surface of the movable end of the hinge. The torsion spring stores elastic potential energy when the hinge fixed end and the hinge movable end are in a folded state, and releases the elastic potential energy when the hinge fixed end and the hinge movable end are in a locking state so as to provide acting force for driving the hinge fixed end and the hinge movable end to be unfolded.

According to a preferred embodiment, the turntable is arranged on the outer wall of the movable end mounting hole on the side close to the limit screw. In case the movable end of the hinge is not rotated to a preset angle, the end of the slide pin close to the movable end of the hinge and/or the slide block can abut against the surface of the turntable. Because the arrangement of the pressure spring and the spring flange ensures that the sliding pin always has a tendency to pop out towards one side of the movable end of the hinge, before the movable end of the hinge rotates to a position where the notch corresponds to the sliding pin, one end of the sliding pin close to the movable end of the hinge and/or the sliding block can abut against the surface of the turntable and slide relatively.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the deployment device of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the hinge module and the rotation module from one perspective of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the hinge module and the rotation module from another perspective of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the deployment device of the present invention in a collapsed state;

fig. 5 is a perspective view of the hinge-fixing end of the present invention.

List of reference numerals

100: a hinge module; 110: a hinge movable end; 111: a movable end mounting hole; 112: a limit screw; 113: a turntable; 114: a set screw; 115: a bayonet; 120: a hinge fixed end; 121: a fixed end mounting hole; 122: a hollow circular groove; 123: a slide pin; 124: a slide block; 125: a pressure spring; 126: a spring flange; 200: a rotating module; 210: a pin shaft; 220: a bearing; 230: a retainer ring; 240: a torsion spring; 250: and (5) locking the nut.

Detailed Description

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.

Example 1

Before a satellite is launched, the antenna, solar array, etc. components typically need to be folded up to fit into the rocket, and after the satellite enters a predetermined orbit, they need to be unfolded to a predetermined angle to perform the corresponding task, the predetermined angle being the angle that the components need to be able to perform their function. The part of the antenna, solar sail etc. that can move during deployment is called the satellite structure active side, and the part of the satellite body etc. that remains relatively stationary during deployment is called the satellite structure stationary side. The satellite hinge unfolding device can be arranged between the movable side of the satellite structure and the fixed side of the satellite structure and is used for realizing the unfolding function of the satellite and the locking function after the unfolding is finished.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1, the satellite hinge unfolding apparatus of the present invention comprises a hinge module 100 connected with a satellite structure, the hinge module 100 comprising a hinge fixed end 120 connected with a fixed side of the satellite structure and a hinge movable end 110 connected with a movable side of the satellite structure, the hinge fixed end 120 and the hinge movable end 110 being hinged with each other by a rotation module 200. When the movable hinge end 110 is turned away from the fixed hinge end 120, the movable satellite structure side also performs a deployment movement away from the fixed satellite structure side, thereby achieving deployment of the satellite structure.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 to 3, the rotation module 200 includes a pin 210, and the pin 210 can be connected to both the hinge movable end 110 and the hinge fixed end 120, so that the hinge movable end 110 can perform a tilting motion about the pin 210 as a rotation axis. Specifically, two movable end mounting holes 111 are formed on one side of the hinge movable end 110, which is close to the hinge fixed end 120, and two fixed end mounting holes 121 are formed on one side of the hinge fixed end 120, which is close to the hinge movable end 110, wherein the two movable end mounting holes 111 are respectively abutted against the inner sides of the two fixed end mounting holes 121, so that the pin 210 can establish a rotational connection relationship between the hinge fixed end 120 and the hinge movable end 110 by sequentially penetrating through the four mounting holes.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 2, the body parts of the hinge movable end 110 and the hinge fixed end 120 are plate structures, which are formed with hole structures for penetrating bolts, screws, pins or other forms of fasteners to enable the hinge movable end 110 and the hinge fixed end 120 to be connected to the satellite structure movable side and the satellite structure fixed side, respectively.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 to 4, a torsion spring 240 is provided in the rotation module 200, and the torsion spring 240 is preferably a double-arm torsion spring, that is, has a spiral coil and two torsion arms extending from the coil to two sides, the coil is sleeved on the pin shaft 210, and the two torsion arms respectively act on the hinge fixing end 120 and the hinge moving end 110. When the hinge-fixed end 120 and the hinge-movable end 110 are closed, the torsion spring 240 stores elastic potential energy and releases the elastic potential energy to provide a force driving the two to be unfolded when the two are unlocked. In particular, the elastic potential energy stored in the torsion spring 240 can be increased by increasing the number of coils of the torsion spring 240, thereby increasing the unwinding speed of the hinge movable end 110; by reducing the number of coils of the torsion spring 240, the elastic potential energy stored by the torsion spring 240 can be reduced, thereby reducing the unwinding speed of the hinge movable end 110.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 and 5, the hinge fixing end 120 is provided with a hollow circular groove 122 with two open ends, a cylindrical sliding pin 123 and a compression spring 125 in a compressed state are slidably arranged in the hollow circular groove 122, and a spring flange 126 is arranged at one end of the hollow circular groove 122 where the compression spring 125 is located to seal the opening. Further, as shown in fig. 5, the spring flange 126 is in a flat plate shape and has a plurality of through holes, and a threaded hole is formed at a position corresponding to the through hole on the end surface of the hollow circular groove 122, and the threaded hole of the hollow circular groove 122 can be screwed with a threaded bolt after passing through the through hole of the spring flange 126, so that one end of the compression spring 125, which is far away from the sliding pin 123, can abut against the surface of the spring flange 126, which is relatively fixed in position. Preferably, the end of the compression spring 125 remote from the spring flange 126 is connected to the slide pin 123, and by this arrangement, the slide pin 123 has a tendency to slide away from the spring flange 126 under the elastic force of the compression spring 125. As shown in fig. 1, a sliding block 124 is provided on a side surface of the sliding pin 123 near one end of the hinge movable end 110, and a surface of the sliding block 124 contacting with the metal surface of the hinge fixed end 120 is smooth. The slider 124 is made of a non-metal material, so that friction between the ejecting process of the sliding pin 123 and the metal surface of the hinge fixing end 120 can be reduced to increase the ejecting speed of the sliding pin 123.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 to 4, the outer wall surface of the movable end mounting hole 111 of the hinge movable end 110 is provided with a rotary disk 113 having a bayonet 115, and the rotary disk 113 is rotatable in synchronization with the hinge movable end 110 and has a smooth circumferential surface. When the movable end 110 of the hinge does not rotate to a preset angle, the end of the sliding pin 123 and/or the sliding block 124 always keep a state of abutting against the peripheral surface of the turntable 113, and because the peripheral surface of the turntable 113 is smooth, friction between the end of the sliding pin 123 and/or the sliding block 124 and the movable end 110 of the hinge in the rotating process can be reduced, and energy loss is reduced; when the movable hinge end 110 rotates to a preset angle, the bayonet 115 on the rotary plate 113 just rotates to the end of the sliding pin 123, the sliding pin 123 loses the supporting force provided by the peripheral surface of the rotary plate 113 and ejects towards the movable hinge end 110 under the action of the compression spring 125, and the end and/or the sliding block 124 extend into the bayonet 115 to prevent the movable hinge end 110 from rebounding (reversely rotating). Because the turntable 113 is a relatively independent structure arranged on the outer wall surface of the movable end mounting hole 111, the influence of the dimensional change on the overall operation of the unfolding device is small, and therefore, the fault tolerance of the matching capability of the sliding pin 123 and the bayonet 115 can be improved by reasonably increasing the sizes of the sliding pin 123 and the bayonet 115, so that the dislocation of the microstructure in the design allowable range can not cause the failure of the self-locking function. Preferably, the predetermined angle is an angle between the surface of the movable end 110 of the hinge and the surface of the fixed end 120 of the hinge, preferably 180 °. Preferably, when the hinge movable end 110 rotates reversely, the upper end surface of the sliding pin 123 far from the hinge fixed end 120 is pressed by the turntable 113, and in order to prevent the sliding pin 123 from being in metal fatigue, the pressed surface of the sliding pin 123 can be subjected to targeted strengthening treatment. For example, the surface of the part is in a compressive stress state by the technological means such as shot blasting, rolling, surface chemical treatment and the like, so that the fatigue resistance of the part is improved.

Unlike the prior art, the unfolding device of the present invention is a locking assembly such as the sliding pin 123 provided on the side of the hinge fixing end 120 facing away from the satellite structure fixing side, which prevents the hinge movable end 110 from rebounding, which makes the space for providing the locking assembly relatively rich, and enables the size of the setting dimension to be selected more freely. The size of the locking assembly is properly increased according to actual conditions, so that the fault tolerance of the locking assembly can be improved, namely, the locking capability is not lost due to tiny structural dislocation caused by external interference and other factors, and the structural strength of the locking assembly can be improved by means of larger size, so that the stronger deformation resistance is obtained. The corresponding locking assembly of the solar cell sailboard unfolding self-locking hinge with the publication number of CN215818040U in the prior art is arranged at the position of the rotating shaft, is limited by the diameter of the rotating shaft, and is difficult to flexibly adjust, so that the size of the locking assembly in the prior art is limited, and the locking assembly can provide smaller acting force to the hinge and poorer deformation resistance under the same condition. Therefore, the invention can adaptively change the size characteristics of the locking component according to the use situation of the unfolding device on the premise of not influencing the normal unfolding and self-locking of the unfolding device by changing the setting position of the locking component, thereby improving the fault tolerance and the service life of the locking device.

Preferably, the self-locking of the deployment device means that the hinge movable end 110 is prevented from rotating forward or backward after rotating to a predetermined angle, which can be embodied in both the case that the hinge movable end 110 is not rotated too much (i.e., rotated forward) after being deployed from the hinge movable end 110 to the predetermined angle, and the case that the hinge movable end 110 is not rebounded (i.e., rotated backward) after the deployment device is locked. The prior art often does not consider the problem of excessive rotation of a rotating part in a hinge alone, and the common practice is to arrange a lock tongue which can pop up and extend into a corresponding lock hole after the rotating part reaches a preset angle to realize hinge self-locking. The arrangement mode is actually that only the self-locking assembly of the lock tongue and the lock hole simultaneously bears two distinct functions of preventing the excessive rotation problem and the rebound problem of the rotating part. In fact, because the external environment in which the satellite works is complex, the movable side of the satellite structure may be interfered in all directions to force the rotating part in the hinge to rotate in the forward direction or in the reverse direction, which results in that the lock tongue in the self-locking technical scheme adopted in the prior art is subjected to the shearing force in the two directions which are completely opposite and are applied by the lock hole, so that the lock tongue is easy to generate shearing deformation due to metal fatigue, the service life is further influenced, and even the self-locking function is lost due to fracture. Preferably, in order to achieve self-locking stability of the unfolding device, the unfolding device is additionally provided with a limit screw 112 for preventing the hinge movable end 110 from over rotating besides a sliding pin 123, a rotary table 113 and other locking components for preventing the hinge movable end 110 from rebounding, so that the unfolding device jointly completes the locking function of the unfolding device in a mode of arranging different self-locking components to respectively achieve different functions.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 and 2, the limit screw 112 is disposed on one side of the hinge movable end 110 near the turntable 113, the screw of the limit screw 112 is screwed into the hinge movable end 110, and the head is opposite to the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121. Part of the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121 has a flat surface, that is, the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121 includes an arc surface and a flat surface smoothly connected to each other, wherein the flat surface is disposed tangentially to the arc surface. Before the movable end 110 of the hinge rotates to a preset angle, the stop screw 112 thereon also rotates synchronously with the center of the mounting hole 121 of the fixed end as the center of the circle, and at this time, the distance between each point in the movement track of the head of the stop screw 112 and the arc surface portion in the outer wall surface of the mounting hole 121 of the fixed end remains unchanged all the time, so that the rotation of the movable end 110 of the hinge is not hindered by the setting of the stop screw 112. When the hinge movable end 110 rotates to a preset angle, the sliding pin 123 pops up to prevent the hinge movable end 110 from rebounding, and at the same time, the position of the limit screw 112 just reaches the flat surface part in the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121, and as the flat surface is tangential to the circular arc surface, the movement track of the limit screw 112 gradually intersects with the flat surface, and the flat surface prevents the limit screw 112 from continuing to rotate, so that the locking effect is realized. Thus, the maximum angle between the hinge movable end 110 and the hinge fixed end 120 is defined. Through the bayonet 115 block of the sliding pin 123 and the rotary table 113 and the cooperation of the flat side wall of the limit screw 112 and the fixed end mounting hole 121, the unfolding device has the functions of preventing the rebound (reverse rotation) of the hinge movable end 110 and preventing the excessive rotation (forward rotation) of the hinge movable end 110, and the self-locking requirement of the unfolding device is realized by combining the two functions. In addition, by extending a flat surface on the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121, the number of additional components provided to prevent the hinge movable end 110 from being excessively rotated is reduced, the number of components of the whole device is optimized, and the compactness and reliability of the unfolding device are improved.

The invention designs the setting mode of the locking assembly based on the possible damage reason of the locking assembly. The lock tongue in the self-locking technical scheme adopted in the prior art can be subjected to the shearing force in the two directions which are completely opposite and are applied by the lock hole, so that the lock tongue with the rod-shaped structure is easy to generate shearing deformation to break. In order to prevent breakage, the structural strength of the lock tongue cannot be ignored, and at least enough rigidity resisting shearing is needed to meet the self-locking requirement. In contrast, the limit screw 112 provided for preventing the hinge movable end 110 from being excessively rotated according to the present invention changes the property of the acting force by means of the parallel abutment of the head of the limit screw 112 with the outer wall surface of the corresponding fixed end mounting hole 121, converts the shearing force perpendicular to the extending direction of the locking bolt, which should be applied to the locking bolt, into the compressive force in the same direction as the extending direction of the limit screw 112, and in the case that the material selection of the limit screw 112 and the locking bolt is the same, the ability to resist the compressive deformation is stronger than the ability to resist the shearing deformation, thereby improving the service life and stability of the locking assembly.

Preferably, the unfolding device of the present invention can also change the maximum unfolding angle of the hinge movable end 110 by changing the proportion of the circular arc surface and the flat surface in the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121 to occupy the whole outer wall surface. Specifically, if the proportion occupied by the arc surface increases, it means that the limit screw 112 rotates later to abut against the flat surface in the rotation process of the hinge movable end 110, so as to increase the maximum expansion angle of the hinge movable end 110; conversely, if the proportion occupied by the flat surface increases, this means that the limit screw 112 rotates earlier to abut against the flat surface during rotation of the hinge movable end 110, thereby reducing the maximum expansion angle of the hinge movable end 110. Therefore, the unfolding device of the invention can be provided with the outer wall surfaces of the fixed end mounting holes 121 with different shapes to meet the requirements for different unfolding angles required by different satellite structure movable sides.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 to 3, bearings 220 are provided at both ends of the pin shaft 210, and the bearings 220 are located in a space surrounded by an inner wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121. A retainer ring 230 is attached to the opposite inner sides of the two bearings 220, and a lock nut 250 is arranged on the outer side of the bearing 220 on the side of the pin shaft 210 away from the turntable 113. The arrangement of the bearing 220 can reduce friction between the pin shaft 210 and the hinge fixed end 120, and reduce abrasion between the pin shaft 210 and the hinge fixed end 120, so that the unfolding process of the hinge movable end 110 is smooth, and the arrangement of the bearing 220, the retainer ring 230 and the lock nut 250 can limit axial displacement of the bearing 220, so that the bearing 220 is prevented from slipping in the unfolding process of the hinge movable end 110.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 1 and 2, the movable end mounting hole 111 is provided with a threaded hole penetrating through the wall of the movable end mounting hole, and the set screw 114 is engaged with the threaded hole and connected to the side wall of the pin 210, so that the hinge movable end 110 rotates synchronously with the pin 210. The set screw 114 provides for rotational synchronization of both the hinge movable end 110 and the pin 210, thereby reducing wear due to friction and shock caused by a mismatch in rotational speeds of the two. In addition, synchronous rotation can avoid stress concentration and fatigue damage caused by speed mismatch, and can also avoid part of energy to be wasted in friction and vibration, so that the unfolding efficiency of the satellite structure is improved.

Preferably, the main body structures in the deployment device, such as the hinge movable end 110, the hinge fixed end 120, the pin shaft 210, the retainer ring 230, the slide pin 123 and the spring flange 126, can be made of alloy materials; the limit screw 112, the bearing 220, the lock nut 250, the set screw 114 and the like can be directly used for existing products with mature technology; the compression spring 125 and the torsion spring 240 can be made of metal materials, and different parameters such as the number of turns of the coil can be adjusted according to the change of application scenes to meet the requirement of various driving forces.

The deployment procedure of the deployment device of the present invention is described below:

the hinge fixing end 120 in the unfolding device is arranged on the fixed side of the satellite structure, the hinge movable end 110 is arranged on the movable side of the satellite structure, and a plurality of groups of unfolding devices can be arranged according to the size of the satellite unfolding structure, so that the satellite unfolding failure caused by the failure of a certain group of devices is avoided.

When the satellite needs to be unfolded, the separating mechanism between the fixed side of the satellite structure and the movable side of the satellite structure is triggered under the unfolding instruction of the control system of the satellite body, the separating mechanism releases the compression constraint, and the movable side of the satellite structure is driven by the torsion spring 240 in the hinge module 100 for releasing elastic potential energy, so that the movable end 110 of the hinge can drive the movable side of the satellite structure to do forward overturning movement by taking the pin shaft 210 as a rotating shaft, and the aim of unfolding the satellite is fulfilled.

The sliding pin 123 in the hinge module 100 acts as a self-locking mechanism, and the end of the sliding pin always abuts against the smooth wall surface of the turntable 113 without displacement until the movable end 110 of the hinge rotates to a preset angle (for example, 180 °). When the movable hinge end 110 is unfolded to a preset angle, the bayonet 115 in the rotary table 113 just rotates to correspond to the end of the sliding pin 123, and the sliding pin 123 automatically pops up and stretches into the bayonet 115 of the rotary table 113 under the action of the compressed pressure spring 125 in the hollow circular groove 122, so that the movable hinge end 110 cannot rebound after being unfolded. Meanwhile, the limit screw 112 on the hinge movable end 110 is just abutted against the flat surface in the outer wall surface of the fixed end mounting hole 121, in this way, the hinge movable end 110 is prevented from continuing to rotate, and the maximum included angle between the hinge movable end 110 and the hinge fixed end 120 is limited at a preset angle.

It should be noted that the above-described embodiments are exemplary, and that a person skilled in the art, in light of the present disclosure, may devise various solutions that fall within the scope of the present disclosure and fall within the scope of the present disclosure. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the present description and drawings are illustrative and not limiting to the claims. The scope of the invention is defined by the claims and their equivalents. The description of the invention includes various inventive concepts such as "preferably," "according to a preferred embodiment," or "optionally," all means that the corresponding paragraph discloses a separate concept, and the applicant reserves the right to filed a divisional application according to each inventive concept. Throughout this document, the word "preferably" is used in a generic sense to mean only one alternative, and not to be construed as necessarily required, so that the applicant reserves the right to forego or delete the relevant preferred feature at any time.

Claims (10)

1. A satellite hinge deployment apparatus for deployment of a satellite structure includes a hinge module (100) coupled to a fixed side and a movable side of the satellite structure,

it is characterized in that the hinge module (100) comprises a hinge fixed end (120) connected with the fixed side of the satellite structure and a hinge movable end (110) connected with the movable side of the satellite structure and rotationally connected with the hinge fixed end (120),

under the condition that the hinge movable end (110) rotates to a preset angle, a sliding pin (123) arranged in the hinge fixed end (120) pops up towards the direction where the hinge movable end (110) is located, the hinge movable end (110) is prevented from rebounding in a mode that the end part of the sliding pin stretches into a bayonet (115) arranged on a turntable (113) of the hinge movable end (110), and a limit screw (112) arranged at the hinge movable end (110) prevents the hinge movable end (110) from continuing to rotate in a mode that the limit screw is abutted with the hinge fixed end (120).

2. The deployment device of claim 1, wherein the hinge fixed end (120) and the hinge movable end (110) are rotatably connected by a rotation module (200), the rotation module (200) includes a pin (210), the pin (210) connects the hinge fixed end (120) and the hinge movable end (110) in such a manner that the pin (210) is used as a rotation axis to perform a tilting motion by passing through a fixed end mounting hole (121) provided on the hinge fixed end (120) and a movable end mounting hole (111) provided on the hinge movable end (110).

3. The deployment device of claim 1 or 2, wherein the hinge-securing end (120) is provided with a securing-end mounting hole (121), an outer wall surface of the securing-end mounting hole (121) includes an arc surface and a flat surface connected to each other, the head of the limit screw (112) prevents the hinge-movable end (110) from being excessively rotated by being in contact with the flat surface of the securing-end mounting hole (121), and the securing-end mounting hole (121) is configured to change a ratio of the arc surface and the flat surface occupied by each of the outer wall surface thereof according to a maximum deployment angle required for the active side of the satellite structure.

4. A deployment device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein bearings (220) are provided at both ends of the pin shaft (210), the bearings (220) are located in the fixed end mounting holes (121), retaining rings (230) are provided on opposite inner sides of the bearings (220) in a fitting manner, and locking nuts (250) are provided on outer sides of the bearings (220) on one side of the pin shaft (210).

5. The deployment device of any of claims 1-4, wherein a partial region of the circumferential side wall of the movable end mounting hole (111) is provided with a threaded hole penetrating the hole wall thereof, and a set screw (114) is engaged with the threaded hole and connected to the side wall of the pin (210) such that the hinge movable end (110) rotates in synchronization with the pin (210).

6. The unfolding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that a hollow circular groove (122) is provided on the hinge fixing end (120), one end of the hollow circular groove (122) far away from the pin shaft (210) is closed by a spring flange (126), one end close to the pin shaft (210) is opened, the sliding pin (123) is arranged in the hollow circular groove (122), and one end of the sliding pin (123) close to the spring flange (126) is provided with a pressure spring (125).

7. The deployment device of any of claims 1-6, wherein a slider (124) is disposed on a side of the sliding pin (123) near an end of the hinge movable end (110), and a surface of the slider (124) contacting the hinge fixed end (120) is smooth.

8. The deployment device of any of claims 1-7, wherein the rotation module (200) further comprises a torsion spring (240), a spiral coil of the torsion spring (240) is sleeved on the pin shaft (210), and one of two torsion arms of the coil extending to two sides is in surface contact with the hinge fixed end (120), and the other torsion arm is in surface contact with the hinge movable end (110).

9. The deployment device of any of claims 1-8, wherein the turntable (113) is disposed on an outer wall of the free end mounting hole (111) proximate to a side of the limit screw (112).

10. The deployment device of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the slide pin (123) is close to one end of the hinge movable end (110) and/or the slide block (124) is capable of abutting against a surface of the turntable (113) without the hinge movable end (110) rotating to a preset angle.