Integrated thrust system and satellite

Abstract

The present invention relates to an integrated thrust system and a satellite, wherein the thrust system integrates a cold air thruster, an electrothermal thruster and a microwave ion thruster, and specifically comprises: a control unit for coordinating and controlling the topological parameters of the integrated thrust system, and controlling the switches of the cold air thruster, the electrothermal thruster and the microwave ion thruster according to the thrust requirements of the system at different stages; a propellant supply unit for supplying a common gas working medium for three types of microthrusters, and connecting the cold air thruster and the electrothermal thruster; a microwave generating unit for regulating the size of microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster, and connecting the microwave ion thruster. Compared with the prior art, the present invention can achieve continuous and high-precision adjustable thrust in an ultra-large range of 0.5 to 1000 μN, solves the problem of a small thrust range of the propulsion system, and can realize drag-free control of the satellite system, and is applied to major tasks such as gravitational wave detection and sky-shooting telescopes.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of space thrusters, and in particular to an integrated thrust system and a satellite. Background Art

[0002] For example, Chinese patent application 202110327474.7 discloses an electric propulsion multi-mode autonomous control system and method; for example, Chinese patent application CN201710822931.3 discloses a wide range adjustable plasma microthruster using solid working fluid. Taking the above patent applications as an example, the existing thruster technical solutions generally have the following disadvantages:

[0003] 1) The thrust adjustment range of the thruster used in the existing scheme is small and the thrust accuracy is not high: only electric propulsion technology is used, and the thrust generated is about 100 millinewtons;

[0004] 2) The existing scheme realizes thrust adjustment by adjusting the ignition flow rate, anode power and screen power, and the thrust adjustment flexibility is low. Summary of the invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to overcome the defects of the above-mentioned prior art and provide an integrated thrust system and a satellite.

[0006] The purpose of the present invention can be achieved by the following technical solutions:

[0007] As a first aspect of the present invention, an integrated thrust system is provided, wherein the integrated thrust system integrates a cold air thruster, an electrothermal thruster and a microwave ion thruster, and specifically comprises:

[0008] A control unit is used to coordinate the topological parameters of the integrated thrust system and control the switching of the cold air thruster, the electrothermal thruster, and the microwave ion thruster according to the thrust requirements of the system at different stages;

[0009] The propellant supply unit is used to supply three types of common gas working fluids for micro-thrusters and connect the cold air thruster and the electric heating thruster;

[0010] A microwave generating unit, used for regulating the size of microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster and connected to the microwave ion thruster;

[0011] The power supply unit is used to convert the bus voltage into the voltage and current required by the thruster and provide the required power for each unit in the integrated thrust system.

[0012] As a second aspect of the present invention, a satellite is provided, wherein each outer surface of the satellite is respectively provided with the integrated thrust system as described above.

[0013] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0014] 1) The present invention provides a thrust system that integrates three types of thrusters: cold air, electric heating, and microwave ion thrusters, and uses a propellant supply unit to provide a common gas working fluid for the three types of micro-thrusters, and a microwave generating unit to control the size of the microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster. Based on the characteristics of different types of thrusters, the integrated design can achieve continuous and precise adjustment of thrust in a super-large range of 0.5 to 1000 μN, and the thrust accuracy can reach: thrust resolution < 0.1 μN, thrust noise 0.1 μN / √Hz: It solves the problem of small thrust range and limited accuracy of the propulsion system;

[0015] 2) The present invention adjusts the ignition flow rate, anode power and screen power to achieve thrust regulation. By establishing a fuzzy PID membership rule table, the key control parameters of the micro-flow system are simulated and determined at the intermediate thrust level value selected by the three-level thrust source, and then the thrust source switching control system is realized to achieve continuous adjustment of variable thrust. Compared with the prior art that only adjusts the ignition flow rate, anode power and screen power to achieve thrust regulation, the thrust regulation scheme of the present invention has higher flexibility and accuracy. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of the integrated propulsion system of the present invention;

[0017] The numbers in the figure are as follows: 1. control unit, 2. FPGA microcontroller, 3. amplifier, 4. pressure sensor, 5. propellant supply unit, 6. argon cylinder, 7. three-stage decompression system, 8. solenoid valve, 9. micro electric heater, 10. microwave generating unit, 11. microwave generator, 12. flow controller, 13. ECR neutralizer, 14. power supply unit, 15. cold air and electric heating hybrid power processing module, 16. ion electric propulsion module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The present invention is described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. This embodiment is implemented based on the technical solution of the present invention, and provides a detailed implementation method and specific operation process, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0019] Example 1

[0020] As one embodiment of the present invention, Figure 1 As shown, this embodiment provides an integrated thrust system integrating a cold air thruster, an electrothermal thruster and a microwave ion thruster, which specifically includes:

[0021] The control unit 1 coordinates and controls the topological parameters of the microthruster integrated system, takes the FPGA microcontroller 2 as the core, and includes an amplifier 3 and a pressure sensor 4; the FPGA microcontroller 2 monitors the data of the pressure sensor 4 in real time and gives feedback, and controls the switching of the cold air, electrothermal, and microwave ion thrusters according to the characteristics of the three thrusters and the system thrust requirements at different stages, and adjusts the integrated thrust on each plane of the satellite according to the PID control algorithm; the amplifier 3 is used to amplify the signal of the pressure sensor 4; the pressure sensor 4 measures the pressure of the three-stage decompression system 7 in real time and transmits the data to the FPGA microcontroller 2.

[0022] According to the performance characteristics of the three thrusters, the thrust range of the thrusters is optimized and designed; according to the thrust characteristics of different thrusters, segmented control is carried out in the coverage range. It is planned to use electric thermal thrusters to provide main thrust in large disturbances, cold air thrusters to provide main thrust in medium disturbances, and ion thrusters to provide micro main thrust in small disturbances. The thrusters are coordinated with each other to achieve continuous and wide-range precise control of the thrust of the thruster module, which solves the problem that the propulsion system cannot flexibly adjust the thrust size.

[0023] The propellant supply unit 5 comprises an argon cylinder 6, a three-stage decompression system 7, an electromagnetic valve 8 and a micro electric heater 9. The argon cylinder 6 is used to store high-pressure argon gas as a common gas working medium for the three micro thrusters. The three-stage decompression system 7 is used to reduce the pressure of the working medium argon gas supply according to the working medium gas pressure and flow requirements of different thrusters at different stages, and supply the working medium argon gas to each thruster through the gas path; the electromagnetic valve 8 is used to control the working medium flow rate of cold air and electric thermal propulsion; the micro electric heater 9 is used to heat the working medium argon gas.

[0024] The microwave generating unit 10 is used to control the size of microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster, and includes a microwave generator 11, a flow controller 12, and an ECR neutralizer 13. The microwave generator 11 is used to generate microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster; the flow controller 12 is used to control the flow of the working fluid argon gas; and the ECR neutralizer 13 is used to emit electrons to maintain the electrical neutrality of the propulsion system.

[0025] The power supply unit 14 converts the primary bus voltage of the spacecraft into various voltages and currents required for the start-up and operation of the thrusters, and provides the required power to other modules according to the instructions of the control unit. It also has telemetry and fault protection functions, and includes a cold air and electric heat hybrid power processing module 15 and an ion electric propulsion module 16. The cold air and electric heat hybrid power processing module 15 provides power to the propellant supply unit 5 through a power supply cable; the ion electric propulsion module 16 provides power to the microwave generation unit 10 through a power supply cable.

[0026] Among them, the micro-control unit 1 coordinates and controls the topological parameters of the micro-thruster integrated system, provides the required power to other modules through the power supply unit 14 according to the instructions of the micro-control unit 1, supplies and regulates the pressure of the working fluid required by the thruster through the thruster supply system 5, and regulates the size of the microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster through the microwave generating unit 10, so as to achieve continuous and accurate adjustment of the ultra-large range of thrust of 0.5 to 1000 μN, thus solving the problem of small thrust range of the propulsion system;

[0027] Specifically, in one embodiment of the present invention, the microwave ion thrust mode mainly covers the range of 0.5 to 50 μN, the cold gas thrust mode mainly covers the range of 50 to 500 μN, and the electrothermal thrust mode mainly covers the range of 500 to 1000 μN. The high-precision mode of the integrated propulsion system can be achieved when the cold gas propulsion system is working, that is, the thrust resolution is <0.1 μN, and the thrust noise is 0.1 μN / √Hz.

[0028] FPGA microcontroller 2 controls the switch of cold air, electric heating, and microwave ion thrusters based on thrust judgment and fuzzy PID micro-flow collaborative control method, realizing rapid response of thruster module and seamless switching of working mode. A thrust control model of thruster module is established to optimize the control strategy on the basis of satisfying thrust control accuracy. Specifically, through the ultra-high precision sub-micron micro-thrust frame, the thrust change curve of ion thruster under different working conditions is quantitatively studied to improve the thrust control accuracy and response time of microwave ion thruster; under the condition of unchanged thrust size, the rapid response of thruster module and the lowest working fluid consumption are realized, ensuring the working time ≥10000h, solving the problem of short life of propulsion system.

[0029] The FPGA microcontroller 2 monitors the data of the pressure sensor 4 in real time and gives feedback. At the same time, the switch of the cold air, electric heating, and microwave ion thrusters is controlled according to the characteristics of the three thrusters and the thrust requirements of the system at different stages. Specifically, the mechanism modeling method is used to derive the mathematical model and control block diagram of the three-stage thrust source switching control system, and establish the state space mathematical expression of the system; the thrust output characteristics of the control system are analyzed by simulation, and the value of the intermediate thrust level of the system is determined; a fuzzy PID membership rule table is established, and the key control parameters of the micro-flow system are simulated and analyzed under the intermediate thrust level value selected by the three-stage thrust source, so as to realize the thrust source switching control system and achieve continuous adjustable variable thrust.

[0030] Example 2

[0031] As a second implementation of the present invention, this embodiment also provides a satellite using the integrated thrust system of the above embodiment that integrates the cold air thruster, the electrothermal thruster and the microwave ion thruster. One or more integrated thrust systems as described in the above embodiment are respectively arranged on each outer surface of the satellite.

[0032] The integrated thrust on each plane of the satellite is adjusted by using PID control algorithm through FPGA microcontroller 2.

[0033] The preferred specific embodiments of the present invention are described in detail above. It should be understood that a person skilled in the art can make many modifications and changes based on the concept of the present invention without creative work. Therefore, any technical solution that can be obtained by a person skilled in the art through logical analysis, reasoning or limited experiments based on the concept of the present invention on the basis of the prior art should be within the scope of protection determined by the claims.

Claims

1. An integrated thrust system, characterized in that: The integrated thrust system integrates a cold air thruster, an electrothermal thruster and a microwave ion thruster, and specifically includes: A control unit (1) is used to coordinate and control the topological parameters of the integrated thrust system, and control the switching of the cold air thruster, the electrothermal thruster, and the microwave ion thruster according to the thrust requirements of the system at different stages; A propellant supply unit (5) is used to supply a common gas working medium for three types of micro-thrusters, wherein the gas working medium is argon; and is connected to a cold air thruster and an electric heating thruster; the propellant supply unit (5) comprises an argon gas cylinder (6) and a three-stage decompression subsystem (7); the argon gas cylinder (6) is used to store high-pressure argon gas; the three-stage decompression subsystem (7) decompresses and regulates the supply pressure of the working medium argon gas according to the working medium gas pressure and flow requirements of different thrusters at different stages, and supplies the working medium argon gas to each thruster through a gas path; A microwave generating unit (10) is used to control the size of microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster and is connected to the microwave ion thruster; A power supply unit (14), used for converting the bus voltage into the voltage and current required by the thruster, and providing the required power to each unit in the integrated thrust system; The microwave ion thruster covers a range of 0.5~50 μN ; The range covered by the cold air thruster is 50~500 μN ; The range covered by the electrothermal thruster is 500~1000 μN ; The control unit (1) comprises: an FPGA microcontroller (2), a pressure sensor (4) and an amplifier (3); The pressure sensor (4) measures the pressure of the three micro-thruster common gas working fluids in real time and transmits the data to the FPGA microcontroller (2); The amplifier (3) is used to amplify the signal of the pressure sensor (4); The FPGA microcontroller (2) controls the switching of the cold air type, electric heating type, and microwave ion thrusters according to the system thrust requirements at different stages based on thrust judgment and fuzzy PID micro-flow coordinated control method, and monitors the pressure sensor (4) data in real time and provides feedback; specifically: The mathematical model and control block diagram of the three-stage thrust source switching control system are derived by using the mechanism modeling method, and the state space mathematical expression of the three-stage thrust source switching control system is established. The thrust output characteristics of the three-stage thrust source switching control system are analyzed through simulation, and the value of the intermediate thrust level of the system is determined; A fuzzy PID membership rule table is established, and the key control parameters of the micro-flow system are simulated and analyzed under the intermediate thrust level values ​​selected by the three-level thrust source, thereby realizing the thrust source switching control system and the continuous adjustment of variable thrust.

2. An integrated thrust system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The propellant supply unit (5) comprises a solenoid valve (8) and a micro electric heater (9); the solenoid valve (8) is used to control the flow rate of the working fluid of the cold air and electrothermal propulsion, and is connected to the cold air thruster; the micro electric heater (9) is used to heat the working fluid common gas working fluid, and is connected to the electrothermal thruster.

3. An integrated thrust system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The microwave generating unit (10) comprises a microwave generator (11), a flow controller (12) and an ECR neutralizer (13); the microwave generator (11) is used to generate microwaves required by the microwave ion thruster; the flow controller (12) is used to control the flow rate of the working fluid argon gas; the ECR neutralizer (13) is used to emit electrons to maintain the electrical neutrality of the thrust system, and the ECR neutralizer (13) is connected to the microwave ion thruster.

4. An integrated thrust system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The power supply unit (14) has both telemetry and fault protection functions, and includes a cold air and electric heating hybrid power processing module (15) and an ion electric propulsion module (16); The cold air and electric heating hybrid power processing module (15) provides power to the propellant supply unit (5) via a power supply cable; and the ion electric propulsion module (16) provides power to the microwave generating unit (10) via a power supply cable.

5. A satellite, characterized in that: An integrated thrust system as described in any one of claims 1 to 4 is respectively arranged on each outer surface of the satellite.

6. A satellite according to claim 5, characterized in that: The control unit (1) adjusts the integrated thrust on each plane of the satellite through a PID control algorithm.

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