A MAGNETICALLY SUSPENDED, SPHERICAL PERMANENT MAGNETIC DIPOLE ACTUATOR

Abstract

The attitude control system (ACS) of a spacecraft contains a minimum of three reaction wheels to rotate the spacecraft in 3 degrees of freedom (DoF), but typically contains additional reaction wheels for both redundancy and improved pointing accuracy. Each wheel rotates the spacecraft about its axis by imparting an equal-and-opposite torque when the spacecraft accelerates the wheel. Since space, weight, and power (SWaP) are a premium on a spacecraft, reaction spheres, which impart an equal-and-opposite torque about an arbitrary axis when the spacecraft accelerates the sphere about that axis, have been proposed to reduce the ACS down to a single device. While NASA first proposed reaction spheres over a half century ago, limitations with previous designs have kept the technology from commercialization. These designs can be generalized into two categories: asynchronous, induction-type actuators and synchronous actuators similar to DC and hysteresis motors. The induction-type designs are difficult to model and suffer from eddy current losses in the rotor while the synchronous designs often have rotors constructed from multiple magnets which presents fabrication, strength, and balance issues. To incorporate the best of both worlds, the mechanical simplicity of an induction motor with the efficiency and simple model of a brushless DC motor, a spherical permanent magnetic dipole rotor actuated by a stator of surrounding soils has been considered. This paper presents the modeling, design, and vertical suspension of a prototype permanent magnetic dipole reaction sphere depicted in Figure 1.