Self-balance device for side support of primary mirror of equatorial telescope

Abstract

The invention discloses a self-balance device for a side support of a primary mirror of an equatorial telescope, and relates to the side support of the primary mirror of a large-caliber telescope. The device comprises a balance weight, a main shaft, a joint bearing, a swap nut and an adhesion block; the device also comprises an aligning ball bearing, wherein the balance weight is connected with one end of the main shaft; the other end of the main shaft is fixedly connected with the aligning ball bearing; the main shaft is connected with the joint bearing; the joint bearing is connected with the adhesion block through the swap nut; and the adhesion block is fixed to the primary mirror. The self-balance device is simple in structure; and side support force vertical to the direction of the optical axis can be provided without adding radial structure space of the primary mirror of the telescope to ensure the surface figure accuracy of the primary mirror. A group of side support structures are uniformly formed and adhered to the side surface of the primary mirror circumferentially, so that the freedom degree of the primary mirror is restricted effectively; and the position stability of the primary mirror is increased. The device is suitable for the equatorial telescope under complex working conditions, and simultaneously is suitable for an altazimuth telescope under relatively simple working conditions.

Description

technical field [0001] The invention relates to a side support of a main mirror of a large-diameter telescope, in particular to a side support self-balancing device for the main mirror of an equatorial telescope. Background technique [0002] The main feature of the structure of the equatorial telescope is that one of the transmission shafts is parallel to the rotation axis of the earth. This axis is called the right ascension axis, or the polar axis. There is no relative rotation of star positions in the field of view of the equatorial telescope, and at the same time, the equatorial telescope has no blind spot at the zenith position with the best observation conditions. Therefore, in astronomical telescopes, the structure of the equatorial telescope is widely used. [0003] As a key component of a telescope, the primary mirror's aperture size determines the telescope's ability to receive light signals, and its surface shape accuracy determines how accurately the telescope ...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

The structure of the traditional lever balance weight is simple, and the weight of the primary mirror can be unloaded by setting the corresponding counterweight, which is in line with the simple working condition of the horizon telescope with only pitching motion, but in the equatorial telescope, when the primary mirror rotates around the right ascension axis , the traditional lever balance weight structure makes the direction of the supporting force acting on the primary mirror unable to rotate with the rotation of the primary mirror around the right ascension axis due to its single-directional balance weight.

The mercury belt support is to use the buoyancy of mercury to automatically balance the gravity of the main mirror. The disadvantage is that mercury is easy to leak as time increases, causing pollution and damage to the main mirror of the telescope and other optical-mechanical systems, and mercury is toxic. Considering safety, this The supported applications are also limited and are rarely used at present

Pneumatic (or hydraulic) support is a good choice. When the telescope points to different pitch angles, the air pressure can be reasonably set to balance gravity. Therefore, it has been applied in many telescopes. The disadvantage is that there is also a leakage problem, and It is necessary to configure a special air pump to provide corresponding pressure, and the power cannot be cut off suddenly when the telescope is working.

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