Technical issues of centrifuge rotor system clarified through engineering model test

摘要

The Centrifuge Rotor (CR) system is a significant new development that will provide artificial gravity for gravitational experiments involving relatively large biological specimens such as small animals and plants. The Engineering Model (EM) test has been performed to evaluate the rotating performance and the vibration suppression system including active balancing system, vibration isolation mechanism, and active damping system. The EM test results show that the CR can create a stable artificial gravity environment. However, some CR technical issues have been clarified through the EM test such as the active balancing control, the active damping control, the vibration isolation mechanism, the structural reliability, and the air drag effect. The solution toward the Flight Model (FM) design will be discussed.