Performance investigation of a novel pseudoelastic SMA mesh washer gear wheel with micro-jitter attenuation capability

Abstract

A stepper-actuated mechanism, such as a gimbal type antenna, is a major source of micro-jitters that affect the image quality of a high-resolution observation satellite. Attenuating micro-jitter disturbances induced by a stepper motor activation is one method of enhancing image quality of an observation satellite. In this study, we propose a novel gear with micro-jitter attenuation capability for stepper-actuated mechanism. This can be achieved by implementing a pseudoelastic shape memory alloy mesh washer on the gear wheel. This application makes it possible to achieve the gear with lower torsional stiffness and higher damping in the torsional direction of the gear, whose characteristics will assist in resolving the micro-jitter attenuation issues of a gear. The effectiveness of the gear proposed in this study was demonstrated by numerical simulation and jitter measurement tests using the gimbal type antenna mechanism actuated by the stepper motor.