RU2072951C1 - Space vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: space vehicles; interplanetary spacecraft and orbital stations assembled from individual modules in orbit. SUBSTANCE: space vehicle has truss structure 1 made in form of closed circular skeleton with base module 2 located in center of it; longitudinal axis of module 2 is perpendicular to plane of ring. Module 2 is radially connected with skeleton by means of pressure tunnels 3 whose ends (which are closer to center) adjoin side coupling units 4 of base module and far ends adjoin ring over its inner perimeter through sliding hinges. Coupling units 5 which are used as base for mounting change modules 6 (experimental and equipped additionally) are mounted on side surfaces of pressure tunnels 3. Mounted over outer perimeter of ring by means of unified assembly pads 7 are the following extended radially turnable structures: solar batteries 8, radiators 9, etc.; non-tight platforms 10 with equipment being mounted on lateral faces. Assembly pads 7 intended for mounting solar batteries 8 are additionally provided with rotation drives 11 for turning the batteries relative to longitudinal axis. Manipulator 12 is mounted on base module. Coupling units 13 designed for tethering other space vehicles are mounted at ends of base module. To obtain required control moments, engine plants 14 of space vehicle attitude control system are located on lateral surface of pressure tunnels 3 which adjoin circular truss 1 near the ends. EFFECT: enhanced reliability. 5 cl, 7 dwg

Description

 The invention relates to spacecraft (SC) and can be used in the construction of interplanetary spacecraft and orbital stations, the assembly of which due to the large final dimensions is carried out from separate blocks in orbit.

 Manned spacecraft designs are known, for example, the Mir adopted in the USSR as the base for the construction of near-Earth space stations (1), consisting of a base unit to which experimental modules and cargo ships are docked in axial and radial directions, each of which has its energy supply system, which includes, as a rule, extended constructions of solar batteries (SB), antennas, and other equipment.

 The disadvantages of this design include the fact that a significant increase in the total SB area required for the operation of energy-intensive equipment of these modules is accompanied by a noticeable increase in the proportion of shaded areas of photovoltaic coatings (FEP), and the degree of their mutual shading also increases with the growth of SB areas.

 The known project of the promising orbital space station (SS) "FREEDOM" (USA // 2), in which one can distinguish station modules and SB structures spaced apart by a considerable distance, radiators of thermal regime support systems (SOTR), spacecraft orientation engines, and their communication functions as a whole and ensuring their optimal spatial decoupling, a specially designed power truss frame is made, made either in the form of an extended beam, or in the form of a beam closed using two U-shaped truss structures.

 This design requires the inclusion in the structure of the ACS of special robotic and remote vehicles that perform installation, repair and maintenance functions within the entire ACS, supplying them with energy sources and manipulators, and the movement of such transport devices is possible only along the ACS frame, along specially laid guides and, therefore, this will require the reservation of one of the faces of the farm, or the use of operators' exits into outer space to perform such work manually.

 The closest analogue among the known technical solutions is a spacecraft containing experimental modules, covering modules with a ring-shaped truss frame with elements for attaching modules to its inner face, connected to the outer face of the SB frame and radiators of the thermal regime support system, as well as orientation system engines (3) . The spacecraft is a retrofit ACS.

 Experimental space modules are attached to the ring structure of the ACS frame using vibration-isolating rods with active control. The ring structure houses communication systems with transceiver antennas, an orientation and stabilization system with executive motors, solar panels and other systems that ensure the normal functioning of a ethereal orbital laboratory. The collection and maintenance of COSMO-LAB is carried out using two types of robots: free flying (FFR) and working with variable geometry (VGR).

The disadvantages of the spacecraft prototype include the following:
the creation of such robots will require significant material costs and time to develop and conduct field experiments;
the inability, when retrofitting the ACS with new modules, to balance the object as a whole only with the help of its constituent elements;
the lack of experience in fully automated assembly of such large-sized structures in space does not guarantee the achievement of the most set goal due to the following control problems;
inter-orbit FFR flight management and container meeting, docking and transportation operations management;
management of manipulation of structural elements performed by FFR, positioning of structural elements and their automatic assembly into a single rigid ring structure;
management of manipulations with large payloads and cooperative management of the joint work of space robots FFR and VGR during automatic assembly and installation.

 The technical result of the invention is to increase the survivability of the supporting structure during the destruction of its individual fragments, to ensure the conditions of mutual non-shadowing of the spacecraft modules and SB elements, as well as to ensure balancing of the spacecraft throughout the entire service life using the modules included in it, and increase the convenience of assembly and maintenance.

 The specified technical result is achieved by the fact that due to the fact that the known spacecraft (3) additionally contains a module located in the center of the ring of the frame, while at least some experimental modules are connected to the specified module with their own ends using docking nodes, and other ends with the inner face of the frame, solar panels and radiators of the thermal management system are located in the plane of the ring of the frame, and the orientation system motors are installed on the side surfaces of the rinal modules near their ends connected to the frame.

 In this case, the spacecraft can be equipped with an additional ring-shaped truss frame connected by means of radial truss power elements with a truss frame covering the modules, while the solar panels are connected at their outer ends with the inner face of the additional frame.

 In the proposed spacecraft, solar panels can be connected by ends to the corresponding truss frames with the possibility of rotation around the axes passing through the places of these connections and is equipped with rotation drives around these axes.

 In one of the preferred embodiments, in the spacecraft, at least one of the experimental modules is located perpendicular to the plane of the ring of the frame and is fixed by means of a docking unit on the side surface of the experimental module connected to the inner face of the frame.

 In the proposed spacecraft, the ring-shaped frame can be connected to the experimental modules by its diameter and equipped with a rotation drive relative to these modules around an axis coinciding with the specified diameter.

 In FIG. 1 shows a general view of a spacecraft according to the invention; in FIG. 2 embodiment of the SB in the form of canvases stretched over an additional power frame; figure 3 an example of the assembly process in orbit of the additional truss ring and the option of mounting SB between the rings; figure 4 the implementation of the separate orientation of the SB and experimental modules; figure 5 diagram of the deployment of the spacecraft; in FIG. 6 spacecraft interaction with a reusable orbital spacecraft; in Fig.7 a method for connecting germotunnels and truss rings.

 In the presented embodiment, the spacecraft (Fig. 1) consists of a truss made in the form of a closed ring 1 located in its center of the base unit 2, the longitudinal axis of which is perpendicular to the plane of the ring, and connected to the ring in the radial direction with the help of pressure tunnels 3, of which the ends closest to the center of the ring adjoin the lateral docking nodes 4 of the base unit, and those distant through the attachment points to the inner perimeter of the ring 1.

 On the lateral surface of the hermetic tunnels, docking nodes 5 are installed on two sides perpendicular to the plane of the ring, which are the basis for placing the experimental modules 6 on them.

 On the outer perimeter of the ring with the help of standardized mounting pads 7, extended radially deployable structures are fastened: SB 8, radiators COTP 9, and others. On the side faces, leaking platforms 10 with equipment. Mounting pads intended for installation of solar batteries are additionally equipped with rotation wires 11, with the help of which the SB rotations are provided relative to the longitudinal axis. A manipulator 12 is mounted on the base unit.

 At the ends of the base unit there are axial docking nodes 13, designed for mooring other spacecraft. To provide the required controlled moments, the propulsion systems of the orientation systems 14 are placed on the lateral surfaces of the pressure tunnels, near the ends adjacent to the annular truss.

 When equipping the spacecraft with a significant number of technological modules with energy-intensive equipment, a circuit is used to ensure their electricity (Fig. 2), in which the SB elements are made in the form of canvases stretched on the base 1 and an additional 15 KLE power rings, its function of connecting two rings to each other perform truss structures 16. In this case, the choice of one of 2 options for performing SB is carried out on the basis of minimizing the total mass of the spacecraft and is determined by the required power consumption.

 SB fastening between rings 1 and 15 can be performed using a carbine 17 (Fig. 3), which are worn with holes at the ends of the solar panels 8, and others are attached to truss structures 18 - inner and outer rings, where they should be corresponding holes are provided. As the cells of the farm, forming the truss ring, expand, the solar panels turn around. To compensate for mutual deformations between the rings and to ensure constant tension of the SB, the design of the carabiners can be supplemented with a spring strain compensator 19.

 Depending on the flight tasks, the composition of the complex and the experiments carried out on board the spacecraft, a conflict of interest is possible in solving problems such as, for example, the orientation of the complex's modules to an observed object on Earth or in space and the optimal turn of the SB on the Sun. Such a conflict can be eliminated by obtaining solar panels an additional degree of freedom in tracking the direction to the Sun (figure 4). To do this, it is necessary to connect the ring with the spacecraft modules only at 2 points lying on the diameter of the ring, and the attachment points at these points should additionally be equipped with rotation drives.

 The deployment of the spacecraft in orbit (figure 5) is as follows: on the lateral docking nodes 4 of the base unit 2 are installed using the manipulator 12, the hermetic tunnels 3 delivered by cargo ships, in the internal volumes of which are the building elements of the ring truss frame, elements of the SB 8 and other deployable structures .

 After that, operations to assemble the closed truss structure 1 begin. In this case, either the technology of manual assembly of the farm by operators from nodal and bar elements from specially equipped mobile workstations is used or, if the truss is folding, the truss construction is completely unfolded. In the proposed embodiment of the spacecraft using manual assembly, all the working areas of the operators are located in close proximity to the beaten compartments, thereby ensuring the safety of the crew.

 After the assembly of the truss frame 1, it, together with the matching tunnels 3, forms a closed power supporting structure of the spacecraft.

 The additional truss ring as well as the base can be assembled using a special truss assembly unit. The prototype design (the "Support" product) was used in 1990 when folding solar panels on board one of the technological modules delivered to the Mir space station. The principle of operation of the device is sectional assembly of farm cells laid in a container. When the next section leaves the container, it unfolds to the full construction height, followed by fixation of the rods forming the farm cell.

 Unlike the prototype, the apparatus for assembling ring trusses should have not a straight, but an arcuate guide. In addition, the farm cells in the fully deployed position should represent segments of the harvested truss ring.

 Figure 3 shows the stages of assembly of the truss ring and an example of the unfolding of one cell from a fully folded state to a working one. Truss-assembly units 20 are installed at the ends of the radial trusses far from the center of the structure so that the folding direction coincides with the tangent of the truss ring being assembled. After that, on command from the board, the units 20 are turned on for unfolding. When assembling the last cells of the farm, all truss fragments are automatically locked into a single closed ring design.

 The deployment of unfolded (folding extended structures SB 8 and COTP 9 radiators is carried out using the manipulator 12 to the unified mounting platforms 7, pre-installed on the outer perimeter of the truss ring 1, taking into account the requirements for balancing the KLA.

 After they are installed and connected to the onboard cable network, the COTP connectors are docked, the structures are brought into working position by opening them using the folding / (folding and orientation of the solar batteries in the direction to the Sun provided for in their structure using rotation drives 11.

 To reduce the cost of building the spacecraft, its deployment is carried out in a lower than the working orbit, because at the same time, the fuel consumption for transportation of the elements included in the spacecraft with the help of cargo ships will be lower. After the deployment of the spacecraft is completed, it is transferred to a higher working orbit using its own means of completion or a space tug. In order to reduce the loads experienced by the load-bearing force elements, for the period of the maneuver to change the height of the orbit, all extended structures installed on the outer perimeter of the ring are brought into a folded position.

 After the deployment of the spacecraft and its transfer to the working orbit, its operation is carried out as follows.

 After docking with the base unit 2 of the next experimental module 6 or a transport spacecraft (Fig. 6), either unloading (loading of equipment into it, or if it is a module, rearrange it using the manipulator 12 from the axial docking unit of the base unit 4 to one of the nodes 5 located on the oil-tight tunnels 3, for sealed modules 6, or on the upper or lower edge of the annular truss 1 for unpressurized platforms with equipment 10, moreover, from the whole set of installation sites, one is chosen whose placement allows to ensure the required position of the center of mass and moments of inertia of the complex as a whole.For example, with an even number of models they are placed symmetrically with respect to the spacecraft, with an odd number of modules that do not have a pair, they are installed on one of the axial docking nodes 4 of the base unit.This rule holds true for modules having similar or equal masses.

 After docking with the spacecraft a self-retrofitting retrofit module, which has its own solar panel designs, an additional operation is carried out to transfer the SB using the manipulator 12 from such a module to the spacecraft frame and install them on standardized mounting platforms 7.

 When docking with a spacecraft a reusable orbital ship (Fig. 6) with developed aerodynamic surfaces (such as "Space Shuttle" or "Buran" (its approach to the axial docking unit 13 of the base unit 2 is carried out with preliminary orientation of the longitudinal axis of the orbital ship along the bisector of the angle between two adjacent germ tunnels 3, after which, using the manipulator 12, either the operation of extracting equipment from the payload compartment of the ship and installing it on the spacecraft is performed, or loading into the compartment of the spacecraft modules for their subsequent return to the ground.

 During operation, as a result of the disturbing effects of working engines, docking and installation operations, the supporting frame with the elements mounted on it is subjected to dynamic loads, as well as radiation exposure to sunlight, micrometeorite bombardment.

 The power circuit is formed by the truss frame 1 and the elements supporting it in the radial direction, the role of which are the hermetic tunnels 3, and the power circuit is a rigid basis for fastening all the spacecraft elements on it, and in case of loss of load-bearing properties by its individual fragments during long-term operation of the spacecraft in open space, this the strength of its static uncertainty will not lead to a loss of the bearing capacity of the frame as a whole and will provide high survivability of the spacecraft.

 To compensate for flat and three-dimensional (three-degree) temperature and other deformations, the fastening unit used when placing platforms (satellites) of scientific equipment in the payload compartment aboard the spacecraft complex ("Space Shuttle"; "Buran" / (Fig. 7) can be used. The assembly consists of a base 21, a hinged cover 22 of the insert 23, mating with the cover 22 and the base 21 on a spherical surface.In addition, the assembly may have locking bolts 24 for fixing horizontal movements along the guide 25, which is part of the housing. x trunnions 26 within the structure node flip cover 22 rotates about axis 27, is contained in the transport position and fixed by a bolt 28.

 Thus, the attachment of each germ tunnel to the ring can be carried out using such a node. In the event of mutual deformations between the truss ring and the pressure tunnels, the axle 26 slides and rotates inside the insert 23, and the base of the assembly 21 moves along the guide 25, compensating for the deformations. The distortions are compensated due to the presence of a spherical contact surface between 21, 22 and 23. The length of the trunnion is selected based on the maximum calculated mutual deformations. An additional lock nut 29 can be installed on the trunnion.

 When the altitude of the orbit changes, the spacecraft communicates with a second cosmic velocity or when it brakes when approaching another planet to transfer to its circular orbit in interplanetary flights, all extended structural elements placed on the outer edge of the ring are brought into a folded position.

 To create artificial gravity in long interplanetary flights, to provide maximum equipment for the SB, or to deploy in the radial direction extended structures mounted on the outer edge of the ring, a small spin of the spacecraft around its own axis in the direction to the Sun is performed.

 In the spacecraft according to the invention, such technical solutions and devices as the manipulator TKK Buran (Space Shuttle), base unit (ACS Mir), retrofit modules and replaceable modules (Quantum modules) are used as components "," Crystal "and others), a transport spacecraft (" Buran "," Space Shuttle "," Soyuz-T "), SB elements deployed in orbit (folding unit (folding of the SB module of the Crystal module of the Crystal station of the Mir station) ), as well as successfully tested in the conditions of hydraulic weightlessness, manual technology with Orcs farm operators that claims to talk about the feasibility of the alleged invention in the near future.

Claims (5)

 1. A spacecraft containing experimental modules, comprising modules, a ring-shaped truss frame with fastening elements of the modules from its inner edge, solar batteries and radiators of the thermal management system connected to the outer edge of the frame, as well as orientation system engines, characterized in that it contains a module, placed in the center of the ring of the frame, at least some experimental modules are connected to the specified module with one of their ends using docking nodes, and others ends with the inner face of the frame, solar panels and radiators of the thermal management system are located in the plane of the ring of the frame, and the orientation system motors are installed on the side surfaces of the experimental modules near their ends connected to the frame.  2. The apparatus according to p. 1, characterized in that it is equipped with an additional ring-shaped truss frame connected by means of radial truss power elements with a truss frame covering modules, while the solar panels are connected at their outer ends to the inner face of the additional frame.  3. The device according to paragraphs. 1 and 2, characterized in that the solar panels are connected by ends to the corresponding truss frames with the possibility of rotation around the axes passing through the places of these connections and are equipped with rotation drives around these axes.  4. The apparatus according to any one of paragraphs. 1 to 3, characterized in that at least one of the experimental modules is located perpendicular to the plane of the ring of the frame and is fixed with a docking unit on the side surface of the experimental module connected to the inner face of the frame.  5. The apparatus according to any one of paragraphs. 1 to 4, characterized in that the annular frame is connected to the experimental modules by its diameter and is equipped with a rotation drive relative to these modules around an axis coinciding with the specified diameter.

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