CN114735238B - Satellite assembly composed of solar sailboard and antenna and satellite - Google Patents

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention discloses a satellite assembly and a satellite composed of a solar sail and an antenna. The satellite assembly includes: a plate-shaped solar sail unit connected to the main body of the satellite; a plate connected to the main body shaped antenna unit; wherein, the solar sail unit and the antenna unit are configured to be stacked on top of each other and also in the shape of a plate as a whole.

Description

A satellite assembly and satellite composed of solar panels and antennas

technical field

The invention relates to the field of satellite structure design, in particular to a satellite component and a satellite composed of solar panels and antennas.

Background technique

Solar panels are an important component of satellite platforms. At present, most satellite platforms rely on solar panels to provide energy. Generally, after being deployed, the solar panels need to have a larger area that can be irradiated by sunlight, so as to provide enough required energy for the satellite platform. In particular, for satellite platforms with high power consumption such as communication satellites and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites, in order to meet power consumption, the expanded area of the solar panels of such satellite platforms is usually much larger than The surface area of the body of the satellite platform. Taking some SAR satellites as an example, the working power of the load is 10kW. According to an orbital period of 5 minutes, and the long-term power consumption of the satellite is 500W, the unfolded area of the solar panels needs to reach about 12.5 square meters.

In addition to solar panels, antennas are also important components of satellite platforms for tasks such as imaging the Earth. Taking the above-mentioned SAR satellite as an example, if you want to improve the resolution and coverage area of ground imaging, you need to increase the effective aperture or area occupied by the antenna. For the above-mentioned SAR satellite with a load working power of 10kW, if a phased array antenna is used, the area occupied by the antenna needs to be about 11 square meters.

In the case that the satellite platform includes both solar panels and antennas, when the satellite platform is running, a large-area solar panel and a large-area antenna are formed at the same time, resulting in a decrease in the overall structural rigidity of the satellite platform and an increase in flexibility. , and the windward area is also large, and the energy consumption is large when the attitude adjustment of the satellite platform is required.

Contents of the invention

In order to solve the above technical problems, the embodiment of the present invention expects to provide a satellite assembly and satellite composed of solar panels and antennas, which overcomes the lower rigidity of the overall structure of the satellite platform due to the large area of the solar panels and antennas. And the problem that the windward area generally makes the energy consumption required for attitude adjustment larger.

Technical scheme of the present invention is realized like this:

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a satellite assembly composed of a solar panel and an antenna, and the satellite assembly includes:

A sheet-like solar panel unit connected to the main body of the satellite;

a plate-shaped antenna unit connected to the main body;

In this case, the solar panel unit and the antenna unit are configured to be stacked on top of each other and are likewise plate-shaped as a whole.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a satellite, and the satellite includes the satellite assembly according to the first aspect.

Embodiments of the present invention provide satellite assemblies and satellites composed of solar panels and antennas. Since the relative positional relationship between the solar panel units and the antenna units that are both plate-shaped is superimposed on each other and the two are the same as a whole Sheet-shaped, so that the total area occupied by both the solar panel unit and the antenna unit is minimized even if both have a large area, e.g. when the solar panel unit and the antenna unit have the same profile shape In this case, the total area occupied by the two can be reduced by half, thereby alleviating the problem of the reduction of the overall structural rigidity of the satellite and the problem of large energy consumption required for attitude adjustment caused by the large windward area.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a satellite including a satellite assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of a three-dimensional structure of a satellite assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 3 shows a top perspective view of an antenna element according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 4 shows a bottom perspective view of an antenna element according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 5 shows a schematic partial cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A in Figure 2;

Figure 6 shows an exploded perspective view of a satellite assembly according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 7 shows an enlarged view of the dotted box area in Figure 6;

FIG. 8 shows a schematic perspective view of a satellite assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 9 shows a schematic perspective view of a satellite assembly configured to be foldable according to the present invention;

Fig. 10 shows a schematic perspective view of a satellite assembly according to yet another embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed ways

The following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , an embodiment of the present invention provides a satellite assembly 10 composed of a solar panel and an antenna, and the term "satellite assembly" here should be understood as an assembly for a satellite. The satellite assembly 10 may include: a sheet-shaped solar panel unit 11 connected to the main body 20 of the satellite 1, as shown schematically by an unfilled flat-shaped block in FIG. 1 ; The plate-shaped antenna unit 12 to which the main body 20 is connected is schematically shown in FIG. 2 by a gray-filled plate-shaped block. The "slab shape" here means that the solar sail unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 extend in a two-dimensional plane, such as extending in a two-dimensional plane as specifically shown in FIG. 1, not shown, extend in a two-dimensional curved surface, as described in more detail below. Wherein, the solar sail unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 are configured to be stacked on top of each other and are also plate-shaped as a whole. "Stacking" here means that the solar panel unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 can be in a state of being in contact with each other as shown in FIG. touch each other. In order to make the solar sail unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 in the shape of a plate as a whole, both can be in a simple planar shape, as shown in FIG. 1 , and in the solar sail unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 When one is curved, the other is also curved, and the parts where the solar panel unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 overlap each other have the same curved profile shape, so that the solar panel unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 can as close to each other as possible.

For the above-mentioned satellite assembly 10, since the relative positional relationship between the solar sail panel unit 11 and the antenna unit 12, which are both plate-shaped, are stacked on each other and both are also plate-shaped as a whole, even if Both the solar sail unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 have larger areas, and can also minimize the total occupied area of the two. For example, the solar sail unit 11 and the antenna unit 12 shown in FIG. 1 have the same In the case of the outline shape, the total area occupied by the two can be reduced by half, thereby alleviating the problem of the decrease of the overall structural rigidity of the satellite 1 and the problem of large energy consumption required for attitude adjustment caused by a large windward area.

In a specific implementation manner of the foregoing embodiment, referring to FIG. 2 , the antenna unit 12 may be composed of a plurality of antenna elements 120 arranged in a two-dimensional array. In this case, it is difficult to directly assemble the antenna elements 120 one by one to the sailboard unit 11 because the sailboard unit 11 needs to have specific materials and surface structures due to the function of converting solar energy into electrical energy. In this regard, as shown in FIG. 2 , the plurality of antenna elements 120 can be installed on one side of the mounting plate 13 dedicated to realize the mounting function rather than having a specific material and surface structure like the windsurfing unit 11, These antenna elements 120 are integrally formed into a sheet-like component, so as to realize the connection with the solar panel unit 11 . In this case, the solar panel unit 11 may be mounted to the other side of the mounting plate 13 .

More specifically, referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 , each antenna element 120 may include a dipole 12E and a radio frequency connector 12C, wherein the shape of the dipole 12E may be determined according to the required antenna frequency, gain, and the like. In this case, in order to enable the dipole 12E to better transmit and receive signals, referring to FIG. 5 , each antenna element 120 can be installed so that the dipole 12E is far away from the mounting board 13 and the radio frequency connector 12C is close to the Mounting plate 13, in addition, it can be easily understood in conjunction with FIG. 2 that when the antenna element 120 shown in FIGS. The radio frequency connector 12C faces the lower side or the inner side of the satellite assembly 10 . Still referring to Fig. 5 and in conjunction with Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, in order to enable the antenna elements 120 to work normally, each antenna element 120 can also be equipped with a radio frequency cable 12L connected to the radio frequency connector 12C (in Fig. line), circuit box 12S connected to said radio frequency cable 12L (shown schematically by cross-hatched block in FIG. 5 ), and connections for interconnecting said antenna elements 120 Device 12G (shown schematically in FIG. 5 by a vertically hatched block). In this case, in order not to affect the vibrator 12E transceiver signal, as shown in Figure 5 and Figure 6, the circuit box 12S and the connecting device 12G are located on the mounting plate 13 where the solar sail One side of the board unit 11, and the mounting board 13 is formed with a through hole 13T for the RF cable 12L to pass through.

Referring to FIG. 5, it is easy to understand that, for the above-mentioned installation method of the circuit box 12S and the connecting device 12G, the side surface of the installation plate 13 for installing the solar panel unit 11 will be uneven, which will affect the installation of the solar panel unit 11. . In this regard, still referring to FIGS. 2 , 5 and 6 , the solar panel unit 11 can be mounted to the The mounting plate 13 is used to form the interval space IS for accommodating the radio frequency cable 12L, the circuit box 12S and the connecting device 12G between the solar sail unit 11 and the mounting plate 13, as referred to Figure 2 and Figure 5 are easy to understand.

For the above-mentioned plate-shaped antenna unit 12 with a larger area, it is usually necessary to keep its temperature within a certain range, for example, it is necessary to dissipate heat for the antenna unit 12 in the illuminated area, and to keep the antenna unit 12 warm in the shaded area. . For heat preservation, it is usually necessary to heat the antenna, thereby increasing additional energy requirements and requiring an increase in the area of the solar panel unit 11 . In order to reduce or even eliminate the energy consumption required for achieving heat preservation, still referring to Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the said interspace IS can be filled with thermal pads 15 (in Fig. is shown), the thermal pad 15 is used to influence the conduction of the heat generated by the solar panel unit 11 toward the antenna unit 12 . For example, the thermal pad 15 can be a heat conduction pad, and the heat generated by the solar panel unit 11 can be conducted to the antenna unit 12 for the insulation of the antenna unit 12, and the thermal pad 15 can also be a thermal insulation pad, so that To prevent the antenna unit 12 from being affected by the heat conducted from the solar sail unit 11, the heat conduction pad and the heat insulation pad can also be sandwiched between the solar sail unit 11 and the mounting plate 13 at the same time, so as to meet the requirements of the antenna unit 12. Different demand for heat at different areas. The thermal pad 15 can consist, for example, of a multilayer polyimide film or of a heat-conducting material. In addition, when the solar panel unit 11 is installed to the installation plate 13 by means of the plurality of installation pillars 14, the plurality of installation pillars 14 may be cylindrical heat pipes, metal pillars or polyimide pillars, In order to achieve the purpose of controlling heat conduction. In this case, the thermal pad 15 can be designed in conjunction with the installation pillar 14 to control the total amount of heat conducted from the solar panel unit 11 to the antenna unit 12, so as to control the temperature of the antenna unit 12 and reduce the temperature of the antenna unit 12. energy consumed by temperature.

In another specific implementation of the above-mentioned embodiment, referring to FIG. 8 , the antenna unit 12 may be composed of multiple antenna elements 120 arranged in a two-dimensional array as in the previous implementation, but the multiple The antenna element 120 is obtained by printing a pattern F on a printed circuit board (Printed Circuit Board, PCB), and auxiliary components 12A such as radio frequency connectors for the plurality of antenna elements are arranged on the edge of the PCB , so that the PCB and the solar panel unit 11 can be placed on top of each other in direct contact, as shown in FIG. 8 . In this way, the above-mentioned installation plate 13 and installation support 14 can be avoided, so that the number of components of the satellite assembly 10 is reduced and the overall structural thickness of the satellite assembly 10 is reduced.

Referring to FIG. 9 , the satellite assembly 10 is divided into a plurality of plate-shaped sections 10P, and two adjacent sections 10P are connected by a hinge H so that the satellite assembly 10 can be folded and unfolded. In the above case, as shown in FIG. 9, the solar sail unit 11, the antenna unit 12, and the mounting plate 13 are all composed of mutually separated solar sail unit sections 11P, antenna unit sections 12P, and mounting plate sections. 13P, while the aforementioned hinge H can, for example, only connect two adjacent mounting plate sections 13P. Although not shown in the drawings, it is understood that for the satellite assembly 10 shown in FIG. and expand. In this way, the satellite assembly 10 can be in a folded state during the launching phase of the satellite 1 to reduce the required accommodation space for launching, and the satellite assembly 10 can be in an unfolded state during the on-orbit operation phase of the satellite 1 to make the solar panel unit 11 And the antenna unit 12 functions.

Since the above-mentioned solar sail unit 11 and antenna unit 12 are connected together, they both move together, and the satellite assembly 10 may need to be in different attitudes when performing their respective functions. In this regard, the posture of the satellite assembly 10 can be adjusted to be in the position where the solar panel unit 11 receives the sun's rays, except that it is in a signal transceiving posture that is convenient for the antenna unit 12 to transmit and receive signals when the satellite 1 needs to transmit and receive signals. An energy conversion gesture that converts solar energy into electricity.

In yet another implementation of the above-mentioned embodiment, referring to FIG. 10 , the antenna unit 12 may be in the shape of a parabola as a whole, and the solar sail unit 11 is disposed on the back surface 12B of the antenna unit 12 . In this case, in order to ensure that the solar sail unit 11 is stacked with the antenna unit 12 and is also in the shape of a plate as a whole, it is required that the solar sail unit 11 is also in a parabolic shape as a whole, but a parabolic solar sail Panel elements are difficult to manufacture, and solar panel elements that are easy to manufacture are usually flat plates. For this reason, in the present invention, in order to obtain a parabolic solar panel unit 11 as a whole, the solar panel unit 11 can be composed of a plurality of flat solar panel elements 110, each solar panel element 110 are arranged so that the plane in which they are located has only a single point of intersection IP (as schematically shown by a cross) or that each solar panel element 110 is tangent to the back side 12B, and the point of intersection The IP is located at the geometric center of each solar panel element 110, so that, except that the solar panel unit 11 composed of the plurality of solar panel elements 110 overlaps with the antenna unit 12 and is also in the shape of a plate as a whole , the solar panel unit 11 can be as smooth as possible.

Referring back to FIG. 1 , an embodiment of the present invention further provides a satellite 1 , and the satellite 1 may include the satellite assembly 10 according to various embodiments of the present invention.

It should be noted that: the technical solutions described in the embodiments of the present invention can be combined arbitrarily if there is no conflict.

The above is only a specific embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Anyone skilled in the art can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention. Should be covered within the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the protection scope of the claims.

Claims (8)

1. A satellite assembly made of solar panels and antennas, characterized in that the satellite assembly includes: A sheet-like solar panel unit connected to the main body of the satellite; a plate-shaped antenna unit connected to the main body; Wherein, the solar panel unit and the antenna unit are configured to be stacked on top of each other and are also plate-shaped as a whole, Wherein, the antenna unit is composed of a plurality of antenna elements arranged in a two-dimensional array, the plurality of antenna elements are installed on one side of the installation board, and the solar sail panel unit is installed on the other side of the installation board. side, Wherein, each antenna element is installed such that the vibrator of the antenna element is away from the mounting board and the radio frequency connector of the antenna element is close to the mounting board, and each antenna element is also equipped with a A radio frequency cable, a circuit box connected to the radio frequency cable, and a connecting device for interconnecting the antenna elements, wherein the circuit box and the connecting device are located on the mounting plate where the solar panel is installed One side of the unit, and the mounting plate is formed with a through hole for the radio frequency cable to pass through. 2. The satellite assembly of claim 1, wherein the solar panel unit is mounted to the mounting plate by means of a plurality of mounting struts to provide a gap between the solar panel unit and the mounting plate. A separation space for accommodating the radio frequency cable, the circuit box and the connecting device is formed. 3. The satellite assembly according to claim 2, wherein the space is filled with thermal pads, and the thermal pads are used to control the heat generated by the solar panel unit toward the antenna unit. conduction influences. 4. The satellite assembly according to claim 1, wherein the antenna unit is composed of a plurality of antenna elements arranged in a two-dimensional array, and the plurality of antenna elements are obtained by printing patterns on the PCB. , and auxiliary parts for the plurality of antenna elements are provided at the edge of the PCB, so that the PCB and the solar panel unit can be stacked on each other in direct contact. 5. The satellite assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, the satellite assembly is divided into a plurality of plate-shaped sections, and two adjacent sections are connected by hinges This enables the satellite assembly to be folded and unfolded. 6. The satellite assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, the attitude of the satellite assembly is adjusted to be in a signal transceiving mode that is convenient for the antenna unit to transmit and receive signals except when the satellite needs to transmit and receive signals. All other postures are in the energy conversion posture where the solar panel unit receives sunlight to convert solar energy into electrical energy. 7. The satellite assembly according to claim 1, wherein the antenna unit is parabolic as a whole, and the solar sail unit is arranged at the back side of the antenna unit, wherein the solar sail unit It consists of a plurality of flat-plate solar panel elements, and each solar panel element is arranged so that the plane on which it lies has only a single intersection point with the rear surface and the intersection point is located at the geometric center of each solar panel element. 8. A satellite, characterized in that the satellite comprises the satellite assembly according to any one of claims 1-7.

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