An integrated control and structural design approach for mesh reflector deployable space antennas

An integrated control and structural design approach for mesh reflector deployable space antennas is presented in this paper. The coupled relationship of the antenna structure, deployment trajectory, and control system is discussed, and then the integrated design model is proposed. A multi-objective function is set to simultaneously minimize the antenna mass, the impact on antenna, and the energy dissipation of control system. The cross section areas of links, Bezier control points, and controller gain parameters are selected as the design variables. With the eigenfrequency, rigidity, stability, rapidity and accuracy constraints, the optimal integrated design is achieved. The highly nonlinear characteristic of this problem is discussed and corresponding solving strategy and methodology are described. Experiments are carried out to verify the rationality and validity of the structural analysis models and the control algorithm. Numerical simulations demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed design method.