Autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism

Abstract

This invention relates to an autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism, comprising a base mounted on a vehicle; a first gimbal motor mounted on the base, with a first bracket connected to and driven by the first gimbal motor; a second gimbal motor mounted on the first bracket, with a second bracket connected to and driven by the second gimbal motor; a third bracket connected to the second bracket; an antenna mounted on the third bracket, the antenna having a beam direction; an inertial measurement unit mounted on the third bracket; and a control unit mounted on the base, the control unit being electrically connected to the first gimbal motor, the second gimbal motor, and the inertial measurement unit. When the vehicle moves, the control unit controls the first gimbal motor and / or the second gimbal motor according to a measurement signal from the inertial measurement unit, thereby performing yaw and / or pitch attitude compensation on the antenna mounted on the third bracket, so that the beam direction continuously points to the zenith or approaches the zenith within an allowable deviation range.

Claims

1. An autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism, used in conjunction with a vehicle, comprising: a base mounted on the vehicle; a first gimbal motor mounted on the base with its rotation axis parallel to a vertical axis, and a first bracket connected to and driven by the first gimbal motor; a second gimbal motor mounted on the first bracket, its rotation axis parallel to a longitudinal axis, and a second bracket connected to and driven by the second gimbal motor, the longitudinal axis being perpendicular to the vertical axis; a third bracket connected to the second bracket; an antenna mounted on the third bracket, the antenna having a beam direction; an inertial measurement unit mounted on the third bracket; and a control unit mounted on the base, the control unit being electrically connected to the first gimbal motor, the second gimbal motor, and the inertial measurement unit, the control unit receiving external power via an external interface and supplying power to the first gimbal motor and the second gimbal motor; When the vehicle is moving, the control unit controls the first gimbal motor and / or the second gimbal motor according to a measurement signal from the inertial measurement unit, and performs pitch and yaw attitude compensation on the antenna mounted on the third bracket, so that the beam direction continuously points to the zenith or approaches the zenith within an allowable deviation range.

2. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 1, wherein, The third bracket is mounted on the second bracket via a third gimbal motor, and the third bracket is driven by the third gimbal motor. The rotation axis of the third gimbal motor is parallel to a horizontal axis, and the horizontal axis is perpendicular to the vertical axis. The control unit is electrically connected to the third gimbal motor and supplies power to the third gimbal motor. The control unit controls the rotation of the third gimbal motor according to the measurement signal of the inertial measurement unit, thereby performing tumbling attitude compensation for the antenna mounted on the third bracket.

3. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 2, wherein, The second support has two arms with an intermediate position between them, and the second gimbal motor is connected to the intermediate position.

4. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 3, wherein, The third bracket is connected to the third gimbal motor and the connection is positioned between the two arms.

5. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 1, wherein, The third bracket has a plane, on which the antenna is mounted.

6. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 1, wherein, The vehicle is one of the following: drone, unmanned boat, or unmanned vehicle.

7. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 1, wherein, A conductive shielding sheet is provided between the antenna and the third support.

8. The autonomous zenith tracking satellite antenna mechanism as described in claim 1, wherein, This antenna series includes: planar PCB antenna, patch antenna, quad-arm helical antenna, columnar antenna, array antenna, or L-band satellite communication antenna.

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