Brassboard Acquisition and Tracking Requirements Study.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to define the hardware design requirements of a brassboard acquisition and tracking subsystem, based on the preliminary subsystem design documented in SAMSO-TR-71-251. The work includes detailed design for the acquisition and tracking subsystem, simulation equipment, and precision instrumentation equipment; and detailed descriptions of the integration of components and experiment test plan. The brassboard acquisition and tracking package is configured to verify the performance for all three primary stations; low altitude satellite, synchronous satellite, and ground. It is capable of demonstrating the total automatic sequence of operations required to detect and sense initial errors as large as + or - 8.75 mrad, align the optical boresight and point a simulated communication laser to within + or - 50 micro-rad using 10 pps information, change modes from acquisition to tracking, and track and fine point with an error of less than 1 micro-rad. The precision instrumentation equipment is designed to measure the pointing capability of the brassboard acquisition and tracking subsystem to a fraction of the 1 micro-rad tracking error. The simulation equipment is configured to provide beacon laser signals, realistic satellite rotations, satellite flexure effects, and orbital kinematic motions of the line-of-sight during acquisition and tracking. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1972
Accession Number
AD0906977

Entities

People

  • J. D. Wolf
  • J. P. Carter
  • Jim H. Lowry

Organizations

  • McDonnell Douglas

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Altitude
  • Artificial Satellites
  • Automatic
  • Boresights
  • Communication Equipment
  • Elevation
  • Geosynchronous Satellites
  • Instrumentation
  • Line Of Sight
  • Low Altitude
  • Precision
  • Rotation
  • Simulations
  • Weapons Support Equipment

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Aerospace Test and Evaluation
  • Optical Physics and Photonics.
  • Robotics and Automation.

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy
  • Space
  • Space - Satellites
  • Space - Space Objects