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Efficient Device Placement Design for Spacecraft with Multifunctional Thin-Film Membranes

Efficient Device Placement Design for Spacecraft with Multifunctional Thin-Film Membranes

薄膜デバイスを搭載した多機能膜を有する宇宙機の利用が広く検討されている.本研究では,このような宇宙機の設計初期段階において,各種デバイス配置案に対する動的特性評価の効率化を目的とし,固有振動数解析手法および効率的な姿勢運動解析手法の双方を提案する.

Spacecraft incorporating multifunctional membranes with thin-film devices are being widely investigated for future space missions. This research proposes both a natural frequency analysis method and an efficient attitude dynamics analysis method, aiming to streamline the evaluation of dynamic characteristics for various device placement configurations in the early design stage of such spacecraft.

Abstract

将来の宇宙探査では,大電力の確保や大容量通信,高分解能観測の実現に向けて宇宙機のさらなる大型化が求められている.しかし,ロケットの積載容量には制約があるため,従来の硬く重いパネル構造による大型化には限界がある.この課題の解決策として,軽量な薄膜上に太陽電池やアンテナ等のデバイスを搭載した多機能膜の検討が進んでいる.一方で,多機能膜ではデバイス配置による質量や剛性の偏りが,膜面の挙動や宇宙機の姿勢運動に複雑な影響を及ぼす.そのため,設計段階において動的特性を適切に評価することが重要である.しかし,固有振動数解析には一般に有限要素法が用いられるため計算コストが高く,膜面の振動と宇宙機の姿勢運動が連成するシステムを効率的に解析する手法は十分に確立されていない.そこで本研究では,多機能膜を有する宇宙機の設計初期段階において,各種デバイス配置案に対する動的特性評価の効率化を目的とし,固有振動数解析手法および効率的な姿勢運動解析手法を提案する.

Future space exploration demands ever-larger spacecraft to enable greater power generation capacity, higher-bandwidth communications, and higher-resolution observations. However, the conventional approach of scaling up using heavy, rigid panel structures is limited by rocket payload constraints. As a solution, multifunctional membranes—lightweight thin films incorporating devices such as solar cells and antennas—are actively being investigated. In such membranes, however, mass and stiffness imbalances introduced by device placement can have complex effects on membrane behavior and spacecraft attitude dynamics, making it crucial to evaluate dynamic characteristics appropriately at the design stage. Natural frequency analysis conventionally relies on the finite element method, which is computationally expensive, and no sufficiently established method exists for efficiently analyzing the coupled system of membrane vibration and spacecraft attitude motion. This research therefore proposes both a natural frequency analysis method and an efficient attitude dynamics analysis method for evaluating the dynamic characteristics of various device placement configurations in the early design stage of spacecraft equipped with multifunctional membranes.

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