Design and comparison of embedded air coils for small satellites

Abstract

The paper discusses the comparison of different shapes of embedded air coils for the attitude control of small satellites. Various systems are available in the market for the attitude control of small satellites such as reaction wheels, permanent magnets, magnetic rods, and thrusters. The available systems have large size, heavier weight, and relatively higher power consumption. A miniaturized system with less power consumption and heat dissipation is required that can provide the anticipated torque. This paper focuses on the design and comparison of square and circular air coils embedded in four internal layers (i.e. 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th) of the eight layer CubeSat power management tile (CubePMT) PCB. Each layer has 50 turns of copper traces and four layers have a total of 200 turns. The four embedded coils are reconfigurable and can be connected in different configurations (single, series, parallel, and hybrid) through switches. The two shapes are compared on the basis of dipole moment, torque generated, power dissipated, time of rotation, and thermal heat generation.