ADVANCED TELEMETRY TRACKING SERVO SYSTEM

Abstract

The primary objective of the Advanced Telemetry Tracking System Integration and Development program at WSMR was the development and evaluation of an advanced, almost totally digital servo tracking and control system. This was satisfied by replacing the aging analog servo tracking and control system in one of WSMR’s seven Transportable Telemetry Acquisition Systems (TTAS) with a Digital Control Unit (DCU), an Antenna Control Unit (ACU), and other related equipment, and then evaluating the performance of the resultant digital tracking system, referred to as the Advanced TTAS (TTAS-A). The ACU is the primary interface between the operator and the DCU. Through the ACU, the TTAS-A operator has independent control over each pedestal axis (elevation and azimuth) involving the selection of tracking mode and servo bandwidth. The DCU reports various servo system status and warning conditions back to the operator through the ACU. In this paper, a discussion of the TTAS-A servo system, with emphasis upon hardware external to the DCU, is presented. This includes the operation of servo position and rate loops, system status and warning conditions, and a description of the operator-to-system interface via the ACU display and control functions.