Performance verification and system parameter identification of spacecraft tape recorder control servo

Design adequacy of the lead-lag compensator of the frequency loop, accuracy checking of the analytical expression for the electrical motor transfer function, and performance evaluation of the speed control servo of the digital tape recorder used on-board the 1976 Viking Mars Orbiters and Voyager 1977 Jupiter-Saturn flyby spacecraft are analyzed. The transfer functions of the most important parts of a simplified frequency loop used for test simulation are described and ten simulation cases are reported. The first four of these cases illustrate the method of selecting the most suitable transfer function for the hysteresis synchronous motor, while the rest verify and determine the servo performance parameters and alternative servo compensation schemes. It is concluded that the linear methods provide a starting point for the final verification/refinement of servo design by nonlinear time response simulation and that the variation of the parameters of the static/dynamic Coulomb friction is as expected in a long-life space mission environment.