Design, analysis and experimental investigation on the whole-spacecraft vibration isolation platform with magnetorheological dampers

Satellites are subject to complex loads during launch, and harsh vibration environments often result in failures in launching satellites or damage to on-board instruments. A six-degree-of-freedom conical vibration isolation platform with magnetorheological dampers has been proposed, which is highly integrated and used to partially replace the original connection device to improve the vibration environment. A mathematical model of the vibration isolation platform with rigid payload is established and natural frequencies are solved. On the other hand, a dynamic model of the vibration isolation system including the flexible satellite is established by using dynamic software, and modal analysis and vibration analysis are carried out. The first six natural frequencies of the system obtained by simulation are close to the results of the model solution. Finally, the test platform is built and the ground vibration tests are conducted, and a well-known semi-active control approach called Skyhook is implemented. The test results are in good agreement with the simulation results of the vibration analysis, and the designed vibration isolation system has much better vibration isolation performance than the original system.