Controllable floating electromagnetic capturing mechanism

Abstract

The controllable floating electromagnetic capturing mechanism comprises an electromagnet, a separating device, a connecting rod floating device, a non-contact switch device, a lead screw, a lead screw nut, a guide rod, a linear bearing, a guide rod fixing block, a large gear, a small gear, a motor, an upper shell, a middle shell, a lower shell and a visual camera. The connecting rod floating device comprises a base, an outer connecting rod, an inner connecting rod, a ball rod, an adaptive block, an adaptive rod, a pre-tightening sliding block, a pre-tightening spring, a floating spring and a control sliding block; the separating device comprises a retaining spring, a separating sleeve, a separating shell, a separating plug, a separating rod and a separating spring; the separating device comprises a retaining spring, a separating sleeve, a separating shell, a separating plug, a separating rod and a separating spring; the motor drives the lead screw to rotate through the small gear and the large gear, the control sliding block of the connecting rod floating device is controlled to ascend and descend, and the floating and locking states of the electromagnet are changed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of on-orbit service technology, and specifically relates to a controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism. Background Technology

[0002] There are various ways to handle spacecraft after they are scrapped or retired, including in-orbit repair, replacement of damaged facilities, and deorbiting. When it is impossible to repair or replace damaged facilities, in order to reduce space debris, the defunct spacecraft needs to be towed into a graveyard orbit or burned up in the atmosphere.

[0003] The first step in removing a failed spacecraft from orbit is to capture and connect it to the target spacecraft. Therefore, it is of great significance to study a capture mechanism for non-cooperative targets.

[0004] Currently, net-catching mechanisms are used to capture non-cooperative targets. Although they have a large capture tolerance, they are heavy, have large structural dimensions, low reliability of connection after capture, and require high-level towing control strategies. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The technical problem solved by the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism, which uses magnetic attraction to capture and connect to non-cooperative targets.

[0006] The technical solution adopted in this invention is as follows:

[0007] This invention provides a controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism, comprising: an electromagnet, a separation device, a connecting rod floating device, a non-contact switching device, a lead screw, a lead screw nut, a guide rod, a linear bearing, a guide rod fixing block, a large gear, a small gear, a motor, an upper housing, an intermediate housing, a lower housing, and a vision camera; wherein:

[0008] The linkage floating device includes a base, an outer connecting rod, an inner connecting rod, a ball rod, an adapting block, an adapting rod, a preload slider, a preload spring, a floating spring, and a control slider. The base is sandwiched between the upper and lower housings and is fixedly connected to them. Three hinge holes are evenly distributed on the base. One end of the outer connecting rod is hinged to the hinge hole in the base, and the other end is hinged to the inner connecting rod and the ball rod. The other end of the inner connecting rod is hinged to the adapting block. The adapting block is fixedly connected to the adapting rod, and the adapting rod and the control slider form a sliding pair. The preload slider is loosely fitted onto the adapting rod. The preload spring is pressed between the preload slider and the adapting block. The floating spring is pressed between the adapting rod and the control slider.

[0009] The three ball joints of the linkage floating device are respectively connected to the electromagnet via ball joints; the control slider of the linkage floating device is connected to the lead screw nut; the intermediate housing and the lower housing are fixedly connected; the motor is fixed on the intermediate housing, the pinion is connected to the output shaft of the motor, and the large gear is connected to the lead screw via a spline; three guide rods are evenly distributed on the intermediate housing, one end of which is connected to the upper housing, and the other end is fixed to the intermediate housing via a guide rod fixing block; the guide rods pass through the control slider and form a sliding connection with the control slider through a linear bearing; the vision camera is fixed on the lower housing.

[0010] Furthermore, in the controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism, the motor drives the lead screw to rotate through the small gear and large gear, thereby driving the control slider to rise and fall. When the control slider moves to the upper locking position, the outer connecting rod and the ball rod are almost in a straight line, and both the preload spring and the floating spring are compressed, so that the electromagnet is pressed against the upper housing. When the control slider moves to the lower floating position, neither the preload spring nor the floating spring is compressed, and the electromagnet has three degrees of freedom of floating: pitch, yaw, and axial retraction, through the different compression of the three floating springs.

[0011] Furthermore, the separation device includes: a retaining spring, a separation sleeve, a separation shell, a separation plug, a separation rod, and a separation spring; the separation sleeve is fixedly connected to the electromagnet; the separation shell has two symmetrical protrusions on its exterior, which cooperate with the groove of the separation sleeve, allowing the separation shell to slide within the separation sleeve; the separation rod is movably fitted inside the separation shell and passes through the electromagnet; the separation spring is pressed against the separation rod by the separation plug; the retaining spring is pressed between the electromagnet and the separation shell; when the control slider of the connecting rod floating device is in the locked position, it can push the separation shell upward by 1-2 mm, and the separation spring pushes the separation rod out of the electromagnet by 1-2 mm, achieving the separation effect.

[0012] Furthermore, the non-contact switching device includes a magnet mounting base, a magnet, a Hall circuit board, and a Hall dust cover; three Hall sensors are evenly distributed on the Hall circuit board, and the Hall circuit board is fixedly connected to the intermediate housing; the Hall dust cover is fixed to the intermediate housing to protect the Hall circuit board; the magnet mounting base is fixedly connected to the adapting rod of the linkage floating device, and the magnet is glued to the magnet mounting base. When the electromagnet pitches, yaws, or retracts, the adapting rod can slide down, causing the magnet to approach the Hall circuit board and trigger a signal, indicating that the electromagnet has touched the target.

[0013] Furthermore, the pre-tension spring and the floating spring have different stiffnesses, with the pre-tension spring having a much higher stiffness than the floating spring. The pre-tension slider has two protrusions that cooperate with the guide groove of the control slider to form a sliding pair. When the control slider is in the floating position, the pre-tension slider slides up and down along with the adapting rod, and the pre-tension spring is not compressed or released, while the floating spring is compressed and released. When the control slider is in the locked position, the pre-tension slider is pressed against the guide groove of the control slider and separated from the adapting rod. At this time, both the pre-tension spring and the floating spring are compressed.

[0014] The advantages of this invention over the prior art are as follows:

[0015] (1) The present invention uses electromagnetic attraction method, and the attraction target is attracted by visual guidance. The attraction force is controllable, stable, and has high attraction accuracy and reliability.

[0016] (2) The floating area of ​​the linkage floating device of the present invention is controllable, the floating effect is good, and the floating and fixed states are controllable;

[0017] (3) The present invention has a small overall size, light weight, large docking tolerance, and simple control strategy after attraction. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 This is a schematic cross-sectional view of the floating state of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 3 This is a schematic cross-sectional view of the locking state of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the separation device of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the attraction target of the present invention.

[0024] Label Explanation

[0025] 1-Electromagnet, 2-Shot stick, 3-Inner connecting rod, 4-Adaptive block, 5-Outer connecting rod, 6-Base, 7-Adaptive rod, 8-Preload spring, 9-Preload slider, 10-Floating spring, 11-Control slider, 12-Magnet mounting base, 13-Magnet, 14-Motor, 15-Pin gear, 16-Hall circuit board, 17-Large gear, 18-Lead screw, 19-Lead screw nut, 20-Hall dust cover, 21-Guide rod fixing block, 22-Intermediate housing, 23-Separation sleeve, 24-Separation rod, 25-Retaining spring, 26-Separation shell, 26a-Protruding structure, 27-Separation spring, 28-Separation plug, 29-Upper housing, 30-Guide rod, 31-Lower housing, 32-Linear bearing, 33-Vision camera, 34-Target. Detailed Implementation

[0026] The specific embodiments of the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the drawings are all in a very simplified form and use non-precise ratios, and are only used to facilitate and clarify the explanation of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0027] like Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, the present invention provides a controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism, including: an electromagnet 1, a separation device, a connecting rod floating device, a non-contact switching device, a lead screw 18, a lead screw nut 19, a guide rod 29, a linear bearing 31, a guide rod fixing block 21, a large gear 17, a small gear 15, a motor 14, an upper housing 28, an intermediate housing 22, a lower housing 31, and a vision camera 33;

[0028] like Figure 2 , Figure 4As shown, the linkage floating device includes a base 6, an outer connecting rod 5, an inner connecting rod 3, a ball rod 2, an adapting block 4, an adapting rod 7, a pre-tensioning slider 9, a pre-tensioning spring 8, a floating spring 10, and a control slider 11. The base 6 is sandwiched between the upper housing 29 and the lower housing 31 and is fixedly connected to the upper and lower housings. Three hinge holes are evenly distributed on the base 6. One end of the outer connecting rod 5 is hinged to the hinge hole of the base 6, and the other end of the outer connecting rod 5 is hinged to the inner connecting rod 3 and the ball rod 2. The other end of the inner connecting rod 3 is hinged to the adapting block 4. The adapting block 4 is fixedly connected to the adapting rod 7, and the adapting rod 7 and the control slider 11 form a sliding pair. The pre-tensioning slider 9 is loosely fitted onto the adapting rod 7. The pre-tensioning spring 8 is pressed between the pre-tensioning slider 9 and the adapting block 4. Spring 10 is pressed between adapting rod 7 and control slider 11; three ball rods 2 are respectively connected to electromagnet 1 via ball joints; the control slider 11 of the connecting rod floating device is connected to lead screw nut 19; intermediate housing 22 is fixedly connected to lower housing 31; motor 14 is fixed on intermediate housing 22, pinion 15 is connected to the output shaft of motor 14, and large gear 17 is connected to lead screw 18 via spline; three guide rods 29 are evenly distributed on intermediate housing 22, one end is connected to upper housing 28, and the other end is fixed to intermediate housing 22 via guide rod fixing block 21; guide rod 29 passes through control slider 11 and forms a sliding connection with control slider 11 through linear bearing 31; vision camera 33 is fixed on lower housing 31.

[0029] like Figure 2 , Figure 3 As shown, in the controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism, motor 14 drives lead screw 18 to rotate via pinion 15 and gear 17, thereby controlling the rise and fall of slider 11. When slider 11 moves to the upper locking position, the outer connecting rod 5 and ball rod 2 are almost in a straight line, and both preload spring 8 and floating spring 10 are compressed, pressing electromagnet 1 against the upper housing 29. When slider 11 moves to the lower floating position, neither preload spring 8 nor floating spring 10 is compressed, and the electromagnet 1 has three states of pitch, yaw, and axial retraction due to the different compression of the three floating springs 10. The degree of freedom is floating; the stiffness of the preload spring 8 and the floating spring 10 are inconsistent, with the stiffness of the preload spring 8 being much greater than that of the floating spring 10; the preload slider 9 has two protrusions that cooperate with the guide groove of the control slider 11 to form a sliding pair; when the control slider 11 is in the floating position, as the adaptation rod 7 slides up and down, the preload slider 9 slides up and down together, the preload spring 8 is not compressed and released, and the floating spring 10 is compressed and released; when the control slider 11 is in the locked position, the preload slider 9 is pressed against the guide groove of the control slider 11 and separated from the adaptation rod 7, at which time both the preload spring 8 and the floating spring 10 are compressed.

[0030] like Figure 2 , Figure 3 , Figure 5As shown, the separation device includes: a retaining spring 25, a separation sleeve 23, a separation shell 26, a separation plug 28, a separation rod 24, and a separation spring 27; the separation sleeve 26 is fixedly connected to the electromagnet 1; the separation shell 26 has two symmetrical protrusions 26a on its exterior, which cooperate with the grooves of the separation sleeve 23, allowing the separation shell 26 to slide within the separation sleeve 26; the separation rod 24 is loosely fitted inside the separation shell 26 and passes through the electromagnet 1; the separation spring 27 is pressed against the separation rod 24 by the separation plug 28; the retaining spring 25 is pressed between the electromagnet 1 and the separation shell 26; when the control slider 11 of the connecting rod floating device is in the locked position, it can push the separation shell 26 upward by 1-2 mm, and the separation spring 27 pushes the separation rod 24 out of the electromagnet by 1-2 mm, thus achieving the separation effect.

[0031] like Figure 2 , Figure 3 As shown, the non-contact switching device includes a magnet mounting base 12, a magnet 13, a Hall circuit board 16, and a Hall dust cover 20. Three Hall sensors are evenly distributed on the Hall circuit board 16, and the Hall circuit board 16 is fixedly connected to the intermediate housing 22. The Hall dust cover 20 is fixed on the intermediate housing 22 to protect the Hall circuit board 16. The magnet mounting base 12 is fixedly connected to the adapting rod 7 of the linkage floating device, and the magnet 13 is glued to the magnet mounting base 12. When the electromagnet 1 pitches, yaws, or retracts, the adapting rod 7 can slide down, causing the magnet 13 to approach the Hall circuit board 16 to trigger a signal, indicating that the electromagnet 1 has touched the target.

[0032] like Figure 6 The diagram shows the controllable floating magnetic capture mechanism of the present invention attracting the target 34. The controllable floating magnetic capture mechanism of the present invention is in a... Figure 2 As shown, the floating state is achieved with electromagnet 1 energized, and then it rushes towards the target 34 at a certain speed (10mm / s~30mm / s). After attracting the target 34, the controllable floating magnetic capture mechanism is set to... Figure 3 In the locked state shown, electromagnet 1 remains energized, completing the capture.

[0033] The contents not described in detail in this specification are prior art known to those skilled in the art. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above, and that the invention can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered in all respects as exemplary and non-limiting, and the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description. Thus, it is intended that all variations falling within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the claims be included within the present invention.

Claims

1. A controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism, characterized in that, include: Electromagnets, separation devices, connecting rod floating devices, non-contact switching devices, lead screws, lead screw nuts, guide rods, linear bearings, guide rod fixing blocks, large gears, small gears, motors, upper housings, intermediate housings, lower housings, and vision cameras; The connecting rod floating device is connected to the electromagnet; The motor drives the lead screw to rotate through the small gear and the large gear to control the movement of the connecting rod floating device, thereby switching the floating and locking states of the electromagnet; The middle shell is fixedly connected to the lower shell; The motor is fixed to the middle housing; The vision camera is fixed to the lower housing; The guide rod is on the middle housing, with one end connected to the upper housing and the other end fixed to the middle housing through the guide rod fixing block; Non-contact switching devices are used to detect the contact state between an electromagnet and a target. The separation device is used to separate the electromagnet from the target.

2. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The connecting rod floating device includes: a base, an outer connecting rod, an inner connecting rod, a ball rod, an adapting block, an adapting rod, a preload slider, a preload spring, a floating spring, and a control slider; The base is sandwiched between the upper shell and the lower shell and is fixedly connected to the upper and lower shells. There are three hinge holes evenly distributed on the base. One end of the outer connecting rod is hinged to the hinge hole of the base, and the other end is hinged to the inner connecting rod and the ball rod. The other end of the inner connecting rod is hinged to the adaptation block; The adapting block is fixedly connected to the adapting rod; The adaptor lever and the control slider form a sliding pair; The pre-tightened slider is loosely fitted onto the adapting rod; The preload spring is pressed between the preload slider and the adapting block; A floating spring is pressed between the adaptor rod and the control slider; There are three ball rods, each connected to an electromagnet via a ball joint, and the control slider is connected to the lead screw nut.

3. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 2, characterized in that, There are 3 guide rods, which are evenly distributed on the middle shell. One end of each guide rod is connected to the upper shell, and the other end is fixed to the middle shell through a guide rod fixing block. The guide rod passes through the control slider and forms a sliding connection with the control slider through a linear bearing; The large gear is connected to the lead screw via a spline.

4. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The separation device includes a retaining spring, a separation sleeve, a separation shell, a separation plug, a separation rod, and a separation spring; The separating sleeve is fixedly connected to the electromagnet. The outside of the separating shell is provided with two symmetrical protrusions. These protrusions cooperate with the grooves of the separating sleeve, and the separating shell can slide inside the separating sleeve. The separating rod is slung inside the separating shell and passes through the electromagnet. The separating spring is pressed against the separating rod by the separating plug, keeping the spring pressed between the electromagnet and the separating shell.

5. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 4, characterized in that, When the control slider of the linkage floating device is in the locked position, it can push the separation shell upward by 1-2 mm, and the separation rod is pushed out of the electromagnet by 1-2 mm by the action of the separation spring to achieve separation.

6. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The non-contact switching device includes a magnet mounting base, a magnet, a Hall circuit board, and a Hall dust cover; Three Hall sensors are evenly distributed on the Hall circuit board and are fixed to the middle housing. The Hall dust cover is fixed to the middle housing to protect the Hall circuit board. The magnet mounting base is fixed to the adapting rod of the connecting rod floating device, and the magnet is glued to the magnet mounting base.

7. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 6, characterized in that, When the electromagnet pitches, yaws, or retracts axially, it causes the adaptation rod to slide down, bringing the magnet close to the Hall circuit board to trigger a signal, indicating that the electromagnet has touched the target.

8. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The preload spring and the floating spring have different stiffnesses, and the stiffness of the preload spring is much greater than that of the floating spring. The preload slider has two protrusions, which cooperate with the guide groove of the control slider to form a sliding pair.

9. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 8, characterized in that, When the control slider is in the floating position, the pre-tightening slider slides up and down with the adapting rod and the pre-tightening spring does not move, while the floating spring is pressed or released; when the control slider is in the locked position, the pre-tightening slider is pressed against the control slider guide groove and separated from the adapting rod, while both the pre-tightening spring and the floating spring are pressed.

10. The controllable floating electromagnetic capture mechanism as described in claim 2, characterized in that, When the control slider moves to the upper locking position, the outer connecting rod and the ball rod are nearly in a straight line, and both the preload spring and the floating spring are compressed, pressing the electromagnet against the upper housing; when the control slider moves to the lower floating position, neither the preload spring nor the floating spring is compressed, and the electromagnet has three degrees of freedom of floating—pitch, yaw, and axial retraction—through the different compression of the three floating springs.

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