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In-Flight Position Calibration of the Cassini Articulated Reaction Wheel AssemblyNASA's long-lived Cassini-Huygens spacecraft is currently in its 14th year of flight and in the midst of its second, and final, extended mission. Cassini is a massive interplanetary spacecraft that is three axis stabilized and can maintain attitude control using either its reaction control system thrusters or using reaction wheel control. Cassini has four identical reaction wheels, of which three are mutually orthogonal and have a fixed orientation. The fourth reaction wheel has an articulation motor that allows this reaction wheel to be aligned with the momentum direction of any of the other three fixed reaction wheels. The articulation motor allows this reaction wheel to be used as a replacement for any of the other three wheels without any performance degradation. However, due to limitations in the design of this backup system, there are few telemetric indications of the orientation of this reaction wheel following an articulation. This investigation serves to outline the procedures that have been developed by the Cassini Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem to calibrate the position of the articulated reaction wheel assembly in the event that the momentum direction of this reaction wheel must be reoriented.
Document ID
20150008769
Acquisition Source
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Document Type
Conference Paper
External Source(s)
Authors
Brown, Todd S.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
May 26, 2015
Publication Date
August 13, 2012
Subject Category
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Meeting Information
Meeting: AIAA Guidance, Navigation, and Control Conference and Co-located Conference
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Country: United States
Start Date: August 13, 2012
End Date: August 16, 2012
Sponsors: American Inst. of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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