摘要

This paper presents a detailed design of a locking device which is used to lock the rotary feed structure of a space-borne microwave radiometer during the launching stage. This locking device employs two redundant shape memory alloy (SMA) wires as the actuating elements, uses a self-locking structure to achieve the locking function and a step structure to ensure a safety clearance after release. Based on the design concept, preliminary design of the locking/release unit and the clamp unit are performed. Then, a more accurate simulation of the release process and the cyclic property of the device is carried out by using an improved Brinson's SMA constitutive model and a heat transfer equation. After the design and simulation, four prototypes are fabricated and their performance tests are carried out to evaluate the self-locking property, lifetime and thermal tolerance.