Design and analysis of a novel hinged boom based on cable drive

Hinged booms are widely used in astrophysics missions; however, the trajectory and deployment velocity are difficult to control because they are usually driven by springs, which limits their application in narrow spaces. Thus, a novel hinged boom is highly required to achieve motion controllability. Through an equivalent substitution between the cable drive loop and the binary link in topology, a type synthesis method for the cable-driven single-degree-of-freedom chain is proposed based on the single-open-chain (SOC) adding method. According to the configuration design, a novel cable-driven hinged boom is proposed, aiming to achieve boom synchronism. Then, to preload easily, a method that preload is applied and measured at the cable ends is adopted and the relationship between the initial preload and the target preload is deduced. By analyzing the distribution of cable tension, a new stiffness model is proposed thus a stiffness equation is obtained. Finally, the dynamic simulation analysis and zero-gravity deployment experiment of the hinged boom is carried out to verify its reliability. This research provides a new way for the type synthesis of cable-driven single-degree-of-freedom chain and a new model for analyzing cable-driven stiffness. Moreover, the novel cable-driven hinged boom obtained in this study can be well-applied in the field of aerospace.