Piezoelectric Transformers for Space Applications
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Piezoelectric Transformers for Space Applications Alfredo Vázquez Carazo Department of R&D Engineering, Face Electronics, LC 427 W. 35th Street, Norfolk, Virginia 23508, USA ABSTRACT There is a considerable excitement in the space community about the possibility of performing useful missions in space using vehicles that are much smaller in size than current spacecrafts. Lower cost and new type of missions made of this small satellite very attractive for future missions. Spacecraft in the mass range of 1 to 10 kilograms are often referred to as “nanosatellites”. However, the suite of useful missions for nanosatellite is limited by the dearth of space components of suitable scale. Present day nanosatellites are often drifting, uncontrolled packages of instrumentation of very limited capability. The vital subsystem functions of propulsion, power conversion and storage, attitude control, attitude sensing, data storage, command and data handling, and telemetry, tracking and control, are not well supported by these components availability of a number of small, low-cost nanosatellite components in these subsystem areas. This paper introduces the advances on applications based on piezoelectric transformers for nanosatellites. INTRODUCTION The field of satellite engineering is currently experiencing a radical transformation. Historically, this field has been driven by applications requiring the utmost in performance with little or no concern for cost or manufacturability [1]. These systems have been primarily built for military applications, where performance for specialized use can justify higher cost. The current transformation of the field involves a dramatic shift from defense applications to those driven by the commercial and consumer sector, with a drastic shift in focus from design for performance to design for manufacturability. This transformation also entails a shift from small production volumes to mass production for the commercial market, and from a focus on performance without regard to cost to a focus on minimum cost while maintaining acceptable performance. Commercially speaking, three current trends are fueling interest in satellite systems: 1) Direct-to-the-home television and direct broadcasting; 2) Wireless hand-held mobile phones; and 3) Growth in the number of personal computers used by individuals across the globe. In order to address these trends, government agencies like NASA and Air Force, and commercial industry such as Iridium and Teledesic, believe that multiple satellite constellations are the future. Currently there are, at least, 14 distinct plans for satellite constellations (> 10 satellites flying in formation), for everything from cellular phones to high speed Internet. The main reason are: 1) higher performance by distributing functions to separate satellites; 2) reduced cost by increased manufacturing and distributing redundancy; 3) better upgradability for ever changing industries like communications and the internet. This demand and trend in the satellite industry has motivated
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