The original RW-0.06 was intended as a momentum wheel for a 15 kg satellite, and its torque performance of 5 mNm was adequate for the task. Many customers are now looking to use the RW-0.06 as a reaction wheel and would like a little more torque. The third generation wheel, labeled RW3-0.06, is now available to meet these needs. It has 25 mNm of torque available across the whole speed range. That's 0 to 60 mNm-sec in less than 3 seconds. It's equivalent to a CMG with gimbal rate of 30 deg/sec. Control performance is also significantly improved, with smooth running down below 1 rad/sec. The motor has been upgraded to use high temperature materials, and has been qualified to 140 C. Combined with an automatic shutdown at 125 C this makes the unit inherently safe. The interfaces have been protected, so that a fault of +/- 50 V to any input pin is permissible. Finally, redundant power and data interfaces let the unit keep working through the loss of any one wire in the spacecraft harness. |
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