Shock Analysis Methods Applied on the Small GEO S/C for Shock Environment Severity Assesment at Equipment Level
Abstract
The Small GEO S/C (SGEO) (see Figure 1) is the first European small geostationary satellite platform for telecommunication missions with up to 3 kW payload power. It is based on a classical modular Telecom S/C configuration with a CFRP central tube (CT), CFRP panels and aluminium radiators. In the frame of the SGEO project RUAG Space is responsible for the structure sub-system design and manufacturing and for the qualification tests (acoustic, shock, sine and thermal balance) conducted on the structural thermal model (STM). RUAG Space has performed the strength justification and the dynamic performance verification including the assessment of the equipment responses for sine, acoustic and the prediction and severity evaluation of different shock environments. The main shock events considered within the frame of the SGEO project are the clampband release, launcher induced shock and eventually point source excitation events (e.g. antenna and solar array hold-down mechanism release through a pyro-device and pyro-valve ignition). The derivation of the shock responses at equipment level for the different shock sources was achieved by applying different methods supported by the guidelines reported in the ESTEC Mechanical Shock Design and Verification Handbook [1]. The adopted methods range over numerical simulations with implicit FE code (NASTRAN) for the clampband release, similarity- heritage methods supported by ESTEC test-database for launcher induced shock, and analytical shock attenuation rules for the point source excitation events. This paper mainly focuses on the relevant practical aspects and the experience gained at RUAG Space in order to implement the analysis prediction methods presented in [1].
- Publication:
-
12th European Conference on Spacecraft Structures, Materials and Environmental Testing
- Pub Date:
- July 2012
- Bibcode:
- 2012ESASP.691E.156B