1993 Volume 6 Issue 9 Pages 425-432
In this paper, modeling and vibration control of a flexible solar array paddle are considered. This problem has arisen, in particular, in the area of control of satellites and space stations which have large solar array paddles. We consider the flexible solar array paddle which is in zero gravity field and is rotated about two axes of the flexible plates by motors, respectively. We first derive partial differential equations and two sets of boundary conditions which represent vibration of the paddle and ordinary differential equations which represent the dynamics of angles of rotation of motors. Solving the related eigenvalue problem, the eigenvalues and the corresponding eigenfunctions are obtained. On the basis of a finite-dimensional modal model of the distributed-parameter system, a controller for the flexible solar array paddle is constructed. Simulation results confirm that the controller performs remarkably well.
