A method for unlocking on-board components using an elastic hot knife unlocking device

Abstract

The present invention relates to the technical field of onboard component unlocking, and proposes a method for unlocking onboard components using an elastic hot knife unlocking device. When unlocking an onboard component after a satellite is launched into orbit, power is supplied to the hot knife lead of the elastic hot knife unlocking device to heat the hot knife rod to the melting point of a rope. The rope melts, and the onboard component is unlocked. The elastic hot knife unlocking device used in the present invention is relatively inexpensive and has a short production cycle. It has a low impact during unlocking, which helps improve the stability of the satellite during operation. It has high strength and reliability, occupies a small volume, is easy to install, and has high application value.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to the technical field of on-board component unlocking. Specifically, the present invention relates to a method for unlocking an on-board component using an elastic hot knife unlocking device. Background Art

[0002] Onboard component unlocking devices are widely used in onboard component unlocking scenarios, such as satellite separation into orbit, deployment of solar panels, antennas, and payloads. Conventional unlocking devices primarily utilize pyrotechnics to achieve unlocking. For example, pyrotechnics ignite to generate instantaneous high-pressure gas, which breaks bolts and pushes nuts, thereby unlocking components on-orbit. However, conventional pyrotechnic unlocking devices suffer from significant impact, high cost, bulk, and long lead times.

[0003] Prior art has proposed an unlocking device that uses a hot knife to unlock onboard components. This device pre-tightens two or more components using a rope. The hot knife is heated to the rope's melting point, melting the rope to release the satellite's upper components. However, existing hot knife unlocking devices suffer from issues such as excessive size, insufficient impact resistance, and low reliability. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In order to at least partially address the problems of prior art pyrotechnic unlocking devices, such as excessive impact during unlocking, high cost, large volume, and long lead times, and hot knife unlocking devices, which also occupy a large volume, have insufficient impact resistance, and low reliability, the present invention proposes a method for unlocking onboard components using a flexible hot knife unlocking device, the flexible hot knife unlocking device comprising:

[0005] A hot knife configured to heat up by applying electricity, the hot knife comprising a knife rod and a lead;

[0006] a rope for connecting the component to be unlocked to a fixing device of the satellite; and

[0007] A hinge, comprising:

[0008] a male hinge, the male hinge being arranged on a mounting plate of the satellite;

[0009] A female hinge, the female hinge being used for arranging the hot knife;

[0010] a rotating shaft, the rotating shaft being used to connect the male hinge and the female hinge; and

[0011] a torsion spring, the torsion spring being used to rotate the female hinge relative to the male hinge so as to bring the hot knife into tight contact with the rope;

[0012] After the satellite is launched into orbit, when it is necessary to unlock the on-board components, the hot knife's lead is energized to heat the hot knife's blade to the melting point of the rope. After the rope melts, the on-board components are unlocked.

[0013] In one embodiment of the present invention, the hot knife comprises:

[0014] a knife bar, the knife bar being used for pressing and contacting the rope, the knife bar comprising silicon nitride ceramic on the outside and a metal resistance wire on the inside;

[0015] A lead wire, wherein the lead wire is configured to apply a voltage to the positive and negative electrodes thereof to increase the temperature of the blade rod; and

[0016] An installation device is used to arrange the hot knife on the female hinge.

[0017] In one embodiment of the present invention, the rope includes a first rope ring and a second rope ring, the first rope ring is used to connect with the component to be unlocked, and the second rope ring is connected with a fixing device of the satellite.

[0018] In one embodiment of the present invention, the diameter of the rope is 1.5 mm to 3 mm, and the material of the rope includes high modulus fiber, and the high modulus fiber includes Dyneema fiber and Kevlar fiber.

[0019] In one embodiment of the present invention, the torsion spring provides for a contact pressure of 30N-80N between the hot knife and the rope.

[0020] The present invention has at least the following beneficial effects: by replacing the pyrotechnic unlocking device with a hot knife unlocking device, it is relatively inexpensive and has a short production cycle. Furthermore, the impact during unlocking is small, which helps improve the stability of the satellite during operation. Furthermore, compared to existing hot knife unlocking devices, the outer portion of the hot knife used in the present invention that contacts the rope is made of high-temperature and thermal shock-resistant silicon nitride ceramic. Furthermore, the hot knife elastically contacts the rope via a hinge, providing high strength and reliability. Furthermore, the elastic hot knife unlocking device proposed in the present invention occupies a small space, is easy to install, and has high application value. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] To further illustrate the advantages and features of various embodiments of the present invention, a more detailed description of various embodiments of the present invention will be presented with reference to the accompanying drawings. It will be understood that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the present invention and are not to be considered as limiting the scope of the present invention. In the drawings, for clarity, identical or corresponding components will be represented by the same or similar reference numerals.

[0022] Figure 1 A schematic structural diagram of an elastic hot knife unlocking device in one embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0023] Figure 2 A schematic structural diagram of a hot knife in one embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of the elastic hot knife unlocking device after unlocking is shown in one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] It should be noted that the components in the drawings may be shown exaggeratedly for the sake of illustration and are not necessarily correct to scale. In the drawings, identical or functionally identical components are provided with the same reference numerals.

[0026] In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the phrases "disposed on," "disposed above," and "disposed above" do not exclude the presence of intermediate components. Furthermore, "disposed on or above" merely indicates the relative positional relationship between two components and, in certain circumstances, such as after reversing the product orientation, can be converted to "disposed below or below," and vice versa.

[0027] In the present invention, each embodiment is only intended to illustrate the aspects of the present invention and should not be construed as limiting.

[0028] In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the quantifiers "a" and "an" do not exclude the presence of multiple elements.

[0029] It should also be noted that in the embodiments of the present invention, for the sake of clarity and simplicity, only a portion of the parts or components may be shown, but those skilled in the art will understand that, under the teachings of the present invention, the required parts or components can be added according to the needs of the specific scenario. In addition, unless otherwise stated, the features of different embodiments of the present invention can be combined with each other. For example, a feature in the second embodiment can be used to replace a corresponding or functionally identical or similar feature in the first embodiment, and the resulting embodiment also falls within the scope of disclosure or description of this application.

[0030] It should also be noted that, within the scope of the present invention, terms such as "same," "equal," and "equal to" do not imply absolute equality of values, but rather allow for a certain reasonable error. In other words, such terms also encompass "substantially the same," "substantially equal," and "substantially equal." Similarly, in the present invention, terms such as "perpendicular to" and "parallel to" indicating direction also encompass the meaning of "substantially perpendicular to" and "substantially parallel to."

[0031] In addition, the numbering of the steps of the methods of the present invention does not limit the order in which the steps are to be performed. Unless otherwise specified, the steps of the methods may be performed in different orders.

[0032] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in conjunction with specific embodiments.

[0033] like Figure 1 As shown, the elastic hot knife unlocking device includes a hot knife, a rope and a hinge.

[0034] The hot knife includes a knife rod, a mounting device and a lead. The outer material of the knife rod can be silicon nitride ceramic, which can withstand high temperatures and thermal shocks, and the inner part includes a metal resistance wire, which is sintered integrally through the ceramic rod. Figure 2 The mounting device can be provided with an M10 threaded mounting screw for attaching the hot knife to the hinge. Applying a 12V-24V voltage to the positive and negative terminals of the hot knife via leads can heat the knife rod, with the surface temperature of the knife rod reaching 800°C.

[0035] The rope connects the component to be unlocked to the satellite's fixture. It can be made of high-modulus fibers such as Dyneema and Kevlar. The rope has a diameter of 1.5mm-3mm and can have loops at each end, connecting the component to be unlocked to the satellite's fixture. The loops can be 4-6mm in diameter. The component to be unlocked can be an onboard solar panel, antenna, or payload.

[0036] The hinge includes a male hinge, a female hinge, a rotating shaft, and a torsion spring. The male hinge is mounted on the satellite's mounting plate. The female hinge is used to mount the heat blade. The rotating shaft connects the male and female hinges. The torsion spring allows the female hinge to rotate relative to the male hinge, ensuring tight contact between the heat blade and the rope. The contact pressure can range from 30N to 80N.

[0037] After a satellite is launched into orbit and needs to unlock an onboard component, voltage is applied to the hot knife's leads, rapidly heating the blade to the melting point of the rope. Once the rope melts, the onboard component is unlocked. Figure 3 It shows a schematic structural diagram of the elastic hot knife unlocking device after unlocking.

[0038] By replacing the pyrotechnic unlocking device with a hot knife unlocking device, the present invention is relatively inexpensive and has a short production cycle. Furthermore, the impact during unlocking is minimal, which helps improve satellite stability during operation. Furthermore, compared to existing hot knife unlocking devices, the outer portion of the hot knife in this invention that contacts the rope is made of high-temperature and thermal shock-resistant silicon nitride ceramic. Furthermore, the hot knife elastically contacts the rope via a hinge, providing high strength and reliability. Furthermore, the elastic hot knife unlocking device proposed in this invention occupies a small space and is easy to install, making it highly applicable.

[0039] Although various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they are presented by way of example only and not limitation. It will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that various combinations, modifications, and variations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the breadth and scope of the present invention disclosed herein should not be limited by the exemplary embodiments disclosed above, but should be defined solely in accordance with the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A method for unlocking on-board components using an elastic hot knife unlocking device, characterized in that: The elastic hot knife unlocking device comprises: A hot knife configured to heat up by applying electricity, the hot knife comprising a knife rod and a lead; a rope for connecting the component to be unlocked to a fixing device of the satellite; and A hinge, comprising: a male hinge, the male hinge being arranged on a mounting plate of the satellite; A female hinge, the female hinge being used for arranging the hot knife; a rotating shaft, the rotating shaft being used to connect the male hinge and the female hinge; and a torsion spring, the torsion spring being used to rotate the female hinge relative to the male hinge so as to bring the hot knife into tight contact with the rope; After the satellite is launched into orbit, when it is necessary to unlock the on-board components, the hot knife's lead is energized to heat the hot knife's blade to the melting point of the rope. After the rope melts, the on-board components are unlocked.

2. The method for unlocking on-board components using an elastic hot knife unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The hot knife comprises: a knife bar, the knife bar being used for pressing and contacting the rope, the knife bar comprising silicon nitride ceramic on the outside and a metal resistance wire on the inside; A lead wire, wherein the lead wire is configured to apply a voltage to the positive and negative electrodes thereof to increase the temperature of the blade rod; and An installation device is used to arrange the hot knife on the female hinge.

3. The method for unlocking on-board components using an elastic hot knife unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The rope includes a first rope ring and a second rope ring, wherein the first rope ring is used to be connected to the component to be unlocked and the second rope ring is connected to the fixing device of the satellite.

4. The method for unlocking a satellite component using an elastic hot knife unlocking device according to one of claims 1 and 3, characterized in that: The diameter of the rope is 1.5 mm to 3 mm. The material of the rope includes high modulus fiber, and the high modulus fiber includes Dyneema fiber and Kevlar fiber.

5. The method for unlocking on-board components using an elastic hot knife unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The torsion spring ensures that the contact pressure between the hot knife and the rope is 30N-80N.

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