A device and method for non-destructive measurement of space debris

Abstract

The present application provides a device and method for non-destructive measurement of space debris, comprising: a hollow box in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped; an opening on one end face of the hollow box in the longitudinal direction serving as an incident window; a first sensor group and a second sensor group, each located on a side surface of the inner wall of the hollow box, each consisting of a plurality of sensors arranged in a row, two adjacent to each other; a center line connecting the plurality of sensors parallel to the plane of the incident window; the first sensor group located between the incident window and the second sensor group, and maintaining a certain distance from the incident window and the second sensor group; sensors for detecting space debris entering through the incident window; and a control and measurement circuit electrically connected to the first and second sensor groups for receiving information from the sensors detecting space debris. The advantages of this application are that it can prevent damage to the detection sensors themselves by space debris, enabling long-term on-orbit monitoring of important parameters such as the velocity and flux of space debris.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of aerospace technology, and specifically to a device and method for non-destructive measurement of space debris. Background Art

[0002] Space debris, a byproduct of human space activities, includes completed rocket bodies and satellite bodies, rocket ejecta, discarded materials during space missions, and fragments from collisions between space objects. It is a major source of space environmental pollution. Larger pieces of space debris striking space stations or satellites at high speeds can cause catastrophic accidents. Smaller impacts can also damage or perforate components of space station or satellite modules. The International Space Station, the US Space Shuttle, the Russian Soyuz spacecraft, and my country's manned space stations have all been struck by space debris to varying degrees.

[0003] Currently, the ground-based radar monitoring network catalogs and monitors space debris larger than 10 cm. However, space debris at the centimeter level and below is difficult to monitor due to its small radar cross-section. Currently, the space debris detection technology implemented on the International Space Station uses the impact sensing principle, such as Figure 1 As shown, during the detection process, space debris will penetrate the sensor's sensing film or sensing grid, causing perforations in the sensing film, or breaking the grid wires, causing damage to the detection sensor itself, and its on-orbit lifespan is very limited. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this application is to provide a device and method for non-destructive measurement of space debris, to avoid damage to the detection sensor itself by space debris, and to achieve long-term on-orbit monitoring of important parameters such as the speed and flux of space debris.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present application proposes a non-destructive space debris measurement device, comprising:

[0006] A hollow box body in a rectangular parallelepiped shape; one end face of the hollow box body in the longitudinal direction is opened as an incident window;

[0007] A first sensor group and a second sensor group are located on a side surface of an inner wall of the hollow box; the first sensor group and the second sensor group are each composed of a plurality of sensors arranged in a row in pairs; a center line connecting the plurality of sensors of the first sensor group and the second sensor group is parallel to the plane where the incident window is located; the first sensor group is located between the incident window and the second sensor group and maintains a certain distance from the incident window and the second sensor group; the sensors are used to detect space debris entering through the incident window; and

[0008] The control and measurement circuit is electrically connected to the first sensor group and the second sensor group, and is used to receive information about the space debris detected by the sensors.

[0009] As an improvement to the above device, the sensor includes a concave mirror, a point light source and a photosensitive element;

[0010] The point light source is located on the side of the photosensitive element facing the concave mirror and is installed at the focal position of the concave mirror;

[0011] One side of the photosensitive element where the point light source is mounted is coated with light-absorbing black paint, and the other side is a photosensitive material.

[0012] As an improvement to the above device, the interior of the side panels of the hollow box located on the opposite sides of the first sensor group and the second sensor group is painted with light-absorbing black paint.

[0013] As an improvement to the above device, the number of sensors in the second sensor group is greater than or equal to the number of sensors in the first sensor group.

[0014] The present application also provides a method for non-destructive measurement of space debris, which is implemented based on the above-mentioned device and includes:

[0015] The control and measurement circuit controls the point light sources of the first sensor group and the second sensor group to emit light;

[0016] When space debris enters the hollow box through the incident window, the control and measurement circuit receives reflected light information of the space debris sensed by the photosensitive elements of the first sensor group and the second sensor group;

[0017] Get the velocity V of space debris:

[0018]

[0019] Wherein, d represents the distance between the first sensor group and the second sensor group; t0 represents the moment when the photosensitive elements of the first sensor group sense the reflected light from the space debris; and t1 represents the moment when the photosensitive elements of the second sensor group sense the reflected light from the space debris.

[0020] As an improvement to the above method, the method further includes:

[0021] When space debris passes through the first sensor group or the second sensor group, the counts are accumulated to obtain the space debris flux N per unit time, and the distribution density ρ of the space debris is obtained:

[0022]

[0023] Wherein, S represents the area of ​​the incident window.

[0024] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of this application are:

[0025] During space missions, the surrounding environment in which the instruments operate is in a vacuum state. Utilizing the characteristic that light propagates in a straight line in a vacuum and does not scatter, this application provides a device and method for non-destructively measuring space debris, which can avoid damage to the detection sensor itself by space debris and achieve long-term on-orbit monitoring of important parameters such as the speed and flux of space debris. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 The figure shows a schematic diagram of the space debris detection technology currently implemented on the International Space Station. Among them, AcousticSensors refers to acoustic sensors; Impact time & location refers to impact time and location; Dual-laver Films refers to dual-layer films; Time offlight refers to flight time; Backstop refers to backstop; Impact Energy refers to impact energy; Incoming MMOD refers to incoming space debris; Resistive Grids refers to resistive grids; Damage / Size refers to damage / size;

[0027] Figure 2 The figure shows the structure of the device for non-destructive measurement of space debris;

[0028] Figure 3 The figure shows a schematic diagram of a sensor group composed of multiple sensors;

[0029] Figure 4 The figure shows the schematic diagram of the sensor structure;

[0030] Figure 5 Shown is a schematic diagram of the structure of a photosensitive element and a point light source;

[0031] Figure 6 Shown is a schematic diagram of the space debris sensing principle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The technical solution of this application is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0033] like Figure 2 As shown, the nondestructive space debris measurement device provided in this application includes a hollow housing 1. The hollow housing can be in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped. One end face of the hollow housing 1 along its length is open, serving as an entrance window 2. A first sensor group 3 and a second sensor group 4 are provided on a side surface of the interior of the hollow housing 1. Both the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4 are electrically connected to a control and measurement circuit 5.

[0034] like Figure 3As shown, both the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4 are composed of multiple sensors arranged in a row, two adjacent to each other. The center line connecting the multiple sensors in the sensor group is parallel to the plane of the incident window 2. The first sensor group 3 is located between the incident window 2 and the second sensor group 4, maintaining a certain distance from the incident window 2 and the second sensor group 4.

[0035] like Figure 4 As shown, the sensor includes a concave mirror 11, a point light source 12 and a photosensitive element 13. The point light source 12 is located on the side of the photosensitive element 13 facing the concave mirror 11 and is installed at the focal position of the concave mirror 11. After emitting light, the light is reflected by the concave mirror 11 to form parallel light in a cylindrical shape. Figure 5 As shown, a side of the light source 12 is coated with light-absorbing black paint 14 on the photosensitive element 13 to absorb the parallel light emitted by the sensor group and prevent the light of the point light source 12 from being emitted in the opposite direction. The other side of the photosensitive element 13 away from the point light source 12 is a photosensitive material.

[0036] The sensors in the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4 are arranged adjacent to each other. When the point light source 12 emits light, the parallel light beams from each sensor are adjacent to each other, avoiding any sensing gaps. Multiple sensors are arranged in parallel, and the parallel light beams emitted by the sensors are arranged in parallel, widening the sensing space and filling the entire cross-section of the hollow housing 1. In actual applications, the number of sensors can be set based on the dimensions of the hollow housing 1.

[0037] The inner surface of the side panel 6 of the hollow box 1 located on the opposite side of the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4 is coated with light-absorbing black paint to absorb the parallel light emitted by the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4 to avoid light reflection and refraction inside the box.

[0038] During operation, the control and measurement circuit 5 controls the point light sources 12 in the first and second sensor groups 3 and 4 to emit light and the photosensors 15 to operate. The first and second sensor groups 3 and 4 emit parallel light beams toward opposite sides of the interior of the hollow housing 1. The control and measurement circuit 5 receives the signals output by the photosensors 15 in the first and second sensor groups 3 and 4.

[0039] like Figure 6As shown, when space debris enters entrance window 2 and passes through the collimated light cylinder of first sensor assembly 3, the light impinging on the debris undergoes diffuse reflection. The reflected light is incident on photosensor 15 of first sensor assembly 3, which senses and outputs a signal. This signal is detected by control and measurement circuit 5, and the time of occurrence, t0, is recorded. As the space debris continues its flight and passes through the collimated light cylinder of second sensor assembly 4, the light impinging on the debris undergoes diffuse reflection. The reflected light is incident on photosensor 15 of second sensor assembly 4, which senses and outputs a signal. This signal is detected by control and measurement circuit 5, and the time of occurrence, t1, is recorded. Based on the relationship between flight time and distance, the velocity V of the space debris can be calculated as:

[0040]

[0041] Wherein, d is the distance between the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4 .

[0042] When space debris passes through the first sensor group 3 or the second sensor group, the cumulative count can be used to obtain the space debris flux N per unit time. Substituting the area S of the incident window 2 into the distribution density of space debris can be obtained:

[0043]

[0044] Figure 2-Figure 6 The illustration is for illustrative purposes only, and the specific dimensions of the various components of the device can be adaptively designed according to the actual application scenario. The greater the distance between the first sensor group 3 and the second sensor group 4, the higher the accuracy of the debris measurement.

[0045] The movement direction of space debris is not just a straight line. Setting the number of sensors in the second sensor group 4 to be greater than that in the first sensor group 3 can increase the detection field of view and cover debris with wider or more oblique incident directions.

[0046] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are intended only to illustrate the technical solutions of this application and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the embodiments, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that modifications or equivalent substitutions to the technical solutions of this application do not depart from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of this application and should be encompassed by the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A non-destructive space debris measurement device, characterized in that: The device comprises: A hollow box body in a rectangular parallelepiped shape; one end face of the hollow box body in the longitudinal direction is opened as an incident window; A first sensor group and a second sensor group are located on a side surface of an inner wall of the hollow box; the first sensor group and the second sensor group are each composed of a plurality of sensors arranged in a row in pairs; a center line connecting the plurality of sensors of the first sensor group and the second sensor group is parallel to the plane where the incident window is located; the first sensor group is located between the incident window and the second sensor group and maintains a certain distance from the incident window and the second sensor group; the sensors are used to detect space debris entering through the incident window; and a control and measurement circuit, electrically connected to the first sensor group and the second sensor group, and configured to receive information from the sensors detecting space debris; The sensor includes a concave mirror, a point light source and a photosensitive element; The point light source is located on the side of the photosensitive element facing the concave mirror and is installed at the focal position of the concave mirror; One side of the photosensitive element where the point light source is mounted is coated with light-absorbing black paint, and the other side is a photosensitive material.

2. The non-destructive space debris measurement device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The interior of the side panels of the hollow box body located on the opposite sides of the first sensor group and the second sensor group is painted with light-absorbing black paint.

3. The non-destructive space debris measurement device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of sensors in the second sensor group is greater than or equal to the number of sensors in the first sensor group.

4. A method for non-destructive measurement of space debris, implemented based on the apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising: The control and measurement circuit controls the point light sources of the first sensor group and the second sensor group to emit light; When space debris enters the hollow box through the incident window, the control and measurement circuit receives reflected light information of the space debris sensed by the photosensitive elements of the first sensor group and the second sensor group; Get the velocity V of space debris: Wherein, d represents the distance between the first sensor group and the second sensor group; t0 represents the moment when the photosensitive elements of the first sensor group sense the reflected light from the space debris; and t1 represents the moment when the photosensitive elements of the second sensor group sense the reflected light from the space debris.

5. The method for non-destructive measurement of space debris according to claim 4, characterized in that: Also includes: When space debris passes through the first sensor group or the second sensor group, the counts are accumulated to obtain the space debris flux N per unit time, and the distribution density ρ of the space debris is obtained: Wherein, S represents the area of ​​the incident window.

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