Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings
In space applications, CubeSats are used for all kinds of commercial and research purposes. These small satellites are launched in such large numbers that from a pollution point of view it makes sense to return them intact to Earth. To establish this, a dedicated reentry is needed. During this reent...
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IEEE
2025-01-01
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| Series: | IEEE Open Journal of Instrumentation and Measurement |
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| Online Access: | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11005409/ |
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| author | Jurgen Vanhamel Kin Chio Chao Yifeng Chen |
| author_facet | Jurgen Vanhamel Kin Chio Chao Yifeng Chen |
| author_sort | Jurgen Vanhamel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In space applications, CubeSats are used for all kinds of commercial and research purposes. These small satellites are launched in such large numbers that from a pollution point of view it makes sense to return them intact to Earth. To establish this, a dedicated reentry is needed. During this reentry process, the CubeSat has to make use of a heatshield which deforms due to multiple forces acting upon the structure. In order to monitor this heatshield, this study aims at investigating, designing, simulating, and testing the integration and readout of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) into a mock-up heatshield, in order to monitor its shape. Therefore, a mock-up of a CubeSat and its accompanying heatshield is constructed to simulate the realistic use of FBGs. Based on the external dimensions of the heatshield, the study gives a practical installation pattern for the FBGs. A 3-D simulation model of the heatshield and accompanying CubeSat is built. To achieve deformation in this 3-D model, the study proposes an algorithm based on single-point data. Using existing OROCOS/ROS middleware, the study establishes a comprehensive system for setting up and reading out FBGs in order to gather information on the heatshield’s status. Finally, after testing the mock-up heatshield set, the system can reflect the deformation of the heatshield in real-time in the 3-D model. Additionally, the system can save the entire deformation process of the heatshield as a series of model files, which can be used for sophisticated static analysis. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9f20f43f3d2b4313bbeb586548bc509c |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2768-7236 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IEEE |
| record_format | Article |
| series | IEEE Open Journal of Instrumentation and Measurement |
| spelling | doaj-art-9f20f43f3d2b4313bbeb586548bc509c2025-08-20T03:12:31ZengIEEEIEEE Open Journal of Instrumentation and Measurement2768-72362025-01-0141810.1109/OJIM.2025.356935811005409Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg GratingsJurgen Vanhamel0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0423-3309Kin Chio Chao1https://orcid.org/0009-0001-0215-5538Yifeng Chen2https://orcid.org/0009-0001-7782-2171Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, TU Delft, Delft, HS, The NetherlandsCampus Group T, Faculty of Engineering Technology, KU Leuven, Leuven, BelgiumFaculty of Aerospace Engineering, TU Delft, Delft, HS, The NetherlandsIn space applications, CubeSats are used for all kinds of commercial and research purposes. These small satellites are launched in such large numbers that from a pollution point of view it makes sense to return them intact to Earth. To establish this, a dedicated reentry is needed. During this reentry process, the CubeSat has to make use of a heatshield which deforms due to multiple forces acting upon the structure. In order to monitor this heatshield, this study aims at investigating, designing, simulating, and testing the integration and readout of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) into a mock-up heatshield, in order to monitor its shape. Therefore, a mock-up of a CubeSat and its accompanying heatshield is constructed to simulate the realistic use of FBGs. Based on the external dimensions of the heatshield, the study gives a practical installation pattern for the FBGs. A 3-D simulation model of the heatshield and accompanying CubeSat is built. To achieve deformation in this 3-D model, the study proposes an algorithm based on single-point data. Using existing OROCOS/ROS middleware, the study establishes a comprehensive system for setting up and reading out FBGs in order to gather information on the heatshield’s status. Finally, after testing the mock-up heatshield set, the system can reflect the deformation of the heatshield in real-time in the 3-D model. Additionally, the system can save the entire deformation process of the heatshield as a series of model files, which can be used for sophisticated static analysis.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11005409/CubeSatfiber Bragg grating (FBG)heatshieldmonitoringreentry |
| spellingShingle | Jurgen Vanhamel Kin Chio Chao Yifeng Chen Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings IEEE Open Journal of Instrumentation and Measurement CubeSat fiber Bragg grating (FBG) heatshield monitoring reentry |
| title | Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings |
| title_full | Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings |
| title_fullStr | Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings |
| title_short | Reentry CubeSat Heatshield Monitoring System Using Fiber Bragg Gratings |
| title_sort | reentry cubesat heatshield monitoring system using fiber bragg gratings |
| topic | CubeSat fiber Bragg grating (FBG) heatshield monitoring reentry |
| url | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11005409/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jurgenvanhamel reentrycubesatheatshieldmonitoringsystemusingfiberbragggratings AT kinchiochao reentrycubesatheatshieldmonitoringsystemusingfiberbragggratings AT yifengchen reentrycubesatheatshieldmonitoringsystemusingfiberbragggratings |