Dynamics and Vibrations of Cable-Harnessed Structures Motivated by Space Applications

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The high costs for launching satellite systems in space have been a significant motivation for the lighter design of space structures to reduce these costs. In this regard, inflatable technology that can be compressed into folded stacks of a few inches of thickness during launch before inflation and deployment over hundreds of feet in space has gained a revolutionary step in placing larger metrology systems in space to improve their coverage while meeting the launch costs and mass goals. While prized for their lightweight designs, the dynamic behaviour of these structures can be heavily impacted by additional components such as space flight cables. The ratio of power cables to payload mass can be up to 20% in a traditional space structure and increases significantly for inflatable structures due to their much smaller weight. Flight program tests performed by the US Air Force Research Labs were among the first to identify that the complexities of space structure dynamics are magnified when structural elements are harnessed to signal and power cables. These complexities, coupled with the unfeasibility of full system ground-based tests before launch due to the large size of inflatables, mandate the need for more accurate models that incorporate the dynamic effects of cables. Therefore, the long-term goal of my research program is to develop analytical tools to accurately model the complex dynamic effects of space flight cables on payloads for all classes of inflatable space technologies. To help achieve this goal, the five-year research program will focus on the development of novel, high-fidelity, simple, and effective analytical tools that are computationally efficient to understand the dynamic impacts of space flight cables on payload plate-like structures and composite cylindrical booms, and ultimately optimization for cables' placements to improve their dynamics. Being the only lab in Canada to perform research on space flight cables dynamic impacts on payload structures and also one of the three labs in Canada to conduct research on inflatable technologies, I will continue to provide the HQP with unique training opportunities that will be in demand by the space industry and companies like CSA, MDA, and Pratt and Whitney Canada. Also, the broader set of skills gained by the HQP on dynamics and vibrations will make them suitable for the automotive and energy industries. In addition, the proposed plan will directly benefit many science and engineering missions in monitoring the Arctic, climate change, oceanography, engineering metrology, Earth's water cycle observations, and forestry. Ultimately, the full implementation of the developed techniques in ultra-light inflatable space technology, anticipated in about ten years for the long-term goal, will significantly advance the field through placing high-fidelity metrology systems with substantially lower launch costs and will have a sustained impact on the space industry and the Canadian economy.