Mechanical Flexure System with Actuation for Inertial Reference Unit Platform

A six-degree-of-freedom platform combining mechanical flexures and actuation will be developed. Analysis, design and simulation will establish the feasibility of a hexapod architecture for platforms used to support inertial reference unit (IRU) sensorpackages. A potential benefit of the hexapod architecture is the ability to control and mitigate the effects of base input vibration in six axes, compared to the two axes of some present systems. This will enhance performance of inertial sensors andenable a better laser source for jitter reduction in various weapons systems. Requirements for IRU's and mechanical platforms will be determined. An integrated system model of the platform including mechanical elements, actuation, and sensing, will bedeveloped and used to assess and drive conceptual designs for mechanical flexure and actuation subsystems. The mechanical design will evaluate several architectures, with an emphasis on achieving isolation transmissibility uncorrupted by secondary modesor parasitic resonances. Finite element models will be employed as necessary. Actuation concept design will use system-level bandwidth requirements and base input levels to determine force requirements. Different actuator types will be evaluated bysimulation. In Phase II, an engineering development unit will be constructed, demonstrating flexure and actuation technology for incorporation into next generation IRU's. The primary application of this technology will be for systems such as Airborne Laser, Space Based Laser, and other similar present and future systems. The technology development is timed to support these systems by enabling next generation inertialsensors to be used most effectively. The extremely precise stable platform could also be used on other satellite imaging systems and in medical devices that enable precision surgery.