Thruster control device and thruster control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11299295-B2
Application number	US-201816223593-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 18, 2018
Priority date	Feb 23, 2018
Publication date	Apr 12, 2022
Grant date	Apr 12, 2022

Abstract

A thruster control device has an opening degree estimating section and an opening degree control section. The opening degree estimating section calculates an estimated opening degree of a valve showing a rate at which the valve is opened, based on a balance of an acting force applied to a valve element of the valve to adjust a quantity of combustion gas to be ejected from a thruster and a fluid force applied to the valve element by the ejected combustion gas. The opening degree control section determines a target opening degree based on the estimated opening degree to control the opening degree of the valve.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A thruster control device comprising:
an opening degree estimating section configured to calculate an estimated opening degree of a valve showing a rate at which the valve is opened, based on a balance of an acting force applied to a valve element of the valve to adjust a quantity of combustion gas to be ejected from a thruster and a fluid force applied to the valve element by an ejected combustion gas; and
an opening degree control section configured to determine a target opening degree based on the estimated opening degree to control an opening degree of the valve,
wherein the opening degree estimating section calculates the fluid force based on an acceleration of the valve element and the acting force, and calculates the estimated opening degree based on the fluid force.

2. The thruster control device according claim 1 , wherein the opening degree estimating section is configured to hold opening degree data showing the opening degree of the valve to the fluid force applied to the valve element by the ejected combustion gas, calculate an acceleration force giving the valve the acceleration based on the acceleration, calculate the fluid force by subtracting the acceleration force from the acting force, and calculate the estimated opening degree from the fluid force based on the opening degree data.

3. The thruster control device according claim 1 , further comprising a valve element control section,
wherein the valve element control section comprises:
a driving section configured to apply the acting force to the valve element to control the opening and closing of the valve; and
a detecting section configured to detect a velocity of the valve element,
wherein the opening degree estimating section is configured to calculate the acceleration based on the velocity, and
wherein the driving section is configured to control the opening and closing of the valve based on the target opening degree.

4. The thruster control device according to claim 3 , further comprising a plurality of the valve element control sections,
wherein the opening degree estimating section is configured to calculate the estimated opening degree for each of the plurality of valve element control sections, and
wherein the opening degree control section is configured to determine the target opening degree for each of the plurality of valve element control sections.

5. The thruster control device according to claim 4 , further comprising:
a combustion chamber configured to store the combustion gas to be ejected from the thruster; and
a pressure sensing section configured to sense a pressure in the combustion chamber,
wherein the opening degree control section is configured to determine the target opening degree for each of the plurality of valve element control sections based on the sensed pressure by the pressure sensing section and the estimated opening degree for each valve element control section.

6. The thruster control device according to claim 5 , wherein the opening degree control section is configured to hold a previous target opening degree of the valve set by the acting force of the driving section of each valve element control section, subtract a target pressure from pressure by the pressure sensing section to calculate a pressure difference, subtract the previous target opening degree from the estimated opening degree to calculate an opening degree difference for each valve element control section, and determine the target opening degree for each valve element control section based on the pressure difference and a rate of the opening degree difference of each valve element control section for a total of the opening degree differences of the plurality of valve element control sections.

7. The thruster control device according to claim 6 , wherein the opening degree control section is configured to calculate the target opening degree based on a product of the pressure difference and the rate of the opening degree difference of each valve element control section to the total of opening degree differences and the previous target opening degree.

8. The thruster control device according to claim 3 , wherein the driving section has a motor configured to generate the acting force by a current, and
wherein the opening degree estimating section is configured to calculate the acting force based on a value of the current.

9. The thruster control device according to claim 1 , wherein the estimated opening degree is defined based on an estimated position of the valve element, and
wherein the target opening degree is defined based on a destination position of the valve element.

10. A thruster control method comprising:
calculating an estimated opening degree of a valve showing a rate at which the valve is opened, based on a balance of an acting force to applied to a valve element of the valve to adjust a quantity of combustion gas to be ejected from a thruster and a fluid force applied to the valve element by an ejected combustion gas; and
determining a target opening degree based on the estimated opening degree to control an opening degree of the valve,
wherein the calculating the estimated opening degree of the valve comprises:
calculating the fluid force based on an acceleration of the valve element and the acting force; and
calculating the estimated opening degree based on the fluid force.

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Heavy Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Okumura Yukihiro
• Nagase Masaaki

Classifications

• B64G1/26

  using jets · CPC title

• F02K9/80 Primary

  characterised by thrust or thrust vector control (burning control of solid propellants F02K9/26; feeding control of liquid or gaseous propellants F02K9/56; re-ignitable, restartable or intermittently operated rocket-engine plants F02K9/94) · CPC title

• B64G1/36 Primary

  using sensors, e.g. sun-sensors, horizon sensors · CPC title

• F02K9/86

  using nozzle throats of adjustable cross- section {(F02K9/978 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B64G1/403

  Solid propellant rocket engines · CPC title