DYNAMICS OF AN ANTENNA POINTING CONTROL-SYSTEM WITH FLEXIBLE STRUCTURES

This paper describes the dynamics of an antenna pointing control system with flexible structures for multibeam communication satellites. The flexible structures are a large antenna main reflector and a subreflector support boom. The main reflector is connected to a rigid main body at multiple points and therefore constitutes a closed loop, and the support boom has a drive mechanism on its tip. First, the dynamics are derived by using Newton-Euler and constraint equations based on connection conditions and Lagrange multipliers and then clarified by incorporating the flexibility of the antenna main reflector and the support boom into coupling coefficients. Those coefficients are numerically and experimentally verified. Also, the effect of the critical structural parameters on the antenna pointing control system is evaluated.