JPH01158239A - Braking method for falling body - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a body falling in high-speed to be soft-landed by arranging a vacuum vessel and an gas braking vessel in series, and providing a vacuum barrier capable of being broken by the falling body, at the lower part of the vacuum vessel. CONSTITUTION:A vacuum vessel 1 and a gas braking vessel 2 are arranged in series. A body 3 is freely dropped from the upper part of the vacuum vessel 1, and the body 3 breaks a vacuum barrier 4, which is fixed at the lower end of the vacuum vessel 1, to reach a braking piston 5 which is stopping at the upper part of the gas braking vessel 2. The body together with the braking piston 5 falls down in the gas braking vessel 2, in the meantime, it receives braking action due to the cushion action of the gas. Thus, the body falling in high-speed can be soft-landed, so that the breakage of machineries inside the body can be prevented.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention provides a method of braking a falling object, particularly a free-falling object, using a gas cushion and recovering the object while preventing damage to the object. It is something.

[Prior art]

For example, various experiments have been attempted, including experiments to manufacture alloys in zero gravity and experiments to conduct chemical and biological reactions. A typical example of this is the method of using artificial satellites, but this requires a huge amount of money and there are problems such as the timing of the satellite's launch, making it difficult to experiment easily. do not have. Therefore, there is a demand for conducting experiments in zero gravity or near zero gravity on the ground, and various experiments are being attempted.

If the falling distance is short, there is no need to consider the air resistance acting on the falling object, but if the falling distance is long, such as when an object is dropped from an aircraft, the air resistance acting on the falling object will be considered. This increases the resistance and makes it impossible to obtain the desired microgravity.

In order to avoid such problems and quickly obtain a zero-gravity state or a state close to this, a method has been adopted in which a capsule carrying experimental equipment is dropped into a vacuum chamber. Vacuum chambers are generally installed inside a high tower or by digging deep underground, but devices using such vacuum chambers have the following problems.

That is, if the length of the vacuum chamber is made long in order to give a sufficient velocity to a falling object, a large amount of braking acceleration will occur, and a sufficiently long braking distance will need to be provided. Therefore, there are problems in that it may be difficult or impossible to safely recover the fallen object, and the cost increases significantly.

Common braking methods for falling objects include the sand pit braking method, in which a bit is dug into the falling position of the object and sand is placed in it, the cushion braking method, which uses other cushioning materials, and the braking method, which guides the falling object. There is a guide rail type braking method, etc., in which a guide rail is provided and a brake is applied to this guide rail.

Furthermore, a system using a linear motor has been proposed as a means for making a soft landing on a falling object, but this system has the disadvantage of being large-scale.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

As described above, in the past, means for applying impact braking to objects falling at high speed has often been employed, making it difficult to safely recover falling objects.

Furthermore, the method of soft landing using a linear motor requires large-scale equipment, which is problematic in terms of cost, and also requires the development of new technology to put this linear motor into practical use.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention was obtained in order to solve the problems of the conventional method of braking a falling object, and its purpose is to provide a means for soft landing of an object falling at high speed. Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a device that can be realized at low cost.

[Summary of the invention]

To achieve the above object, the present invention includes a vacuum tank provided with a vacuum barrier below which can be broken by a falling object, and a gas tank provided below the vacuum tank, and the falling object is protected by a gas cushioning effect in the gas tank. This is a method for braking a falling object, which is characterized by braking by applying a

The present invention uses a device in which at least two tanks, a vacuum tank and a gas movement tank, are combined in series, and preferably creates a weightless state for the falling object while eliminating air resistance by allowing the falling object to fall freely in the vacuum tank. The method is characterized in that a soft landing is reliably realized by applying air motion, preferably air braking, to the falling object.

A means for transferring a falling object from a vacuum tank to an air braking tank has not been proposed in the past, but in the present invention, in particular,
A vacuum barrier is provided at the bottom end of the vacuum chamber that can be broken by falling objects, and while maintaining the vacuum or reduced pressure state in the vacuum chamber,
When a falling object is transferred to the next gas movement tank, the easily broken barrier that maintains the vacuum in the vacuum chamber is broken by the falling object itself, and the object is easily transferred from the vacuum chamber to the gas movement tank. be.

The plate material constituting the breakable barrier needs to be easily broken by the impact force of a falling object and capable of creating a sufficient vacuum inside the vacuum chamber.

Specifically, for example, a thin aluminum plate, a metal plate processed to be easily broken, or a synthetic resin plate that is easily broken can be used. When this vacuum barrier is broken by a falling object, it is preferable not to apply a large impact force to the falling object that would destroy anything inside.

In the gas movement tank, the falling object itself is regarded as a type of piston or a component of the piston, and the piston is moved through the gas movement tank while acting as a gas cushion. This gas cushion can be controlled by controlling the rate at which the gas, especially air, in the gas flow tank is evacuated.

When a piston descends in a gas motion tank while compressing gas, it is possible to make a falling object make a soft landing by controlling the amount of compressed gas based on the relationship between the position of the falling object and the pressure of the gas. be.

[Embodiment] An embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention, in which a vacuum chamber 1 and a gas movement chamber 2 are arranged in series, An object (test equipment, etc.) 3 is allowed to fall freely from the top of the vacuum chamber 1, and the vacuum barrier 4 fixed to the bottom end of the vacuum chamber 1 is broken to break the braking piston 5, which remains at the top of the gas movement chamber 2. The brake piston 5 then descends through the gas movement tank 2, during which time it is braked by the cushioning effect of the gas. In addition,
The cushioning effect utilizes the repulsive force due to the compression effect of gas.

A plurality of position detection sensors 6 and pressure detection sensors 7 are provided in the longitudinal direction of the gas movement tank 2, and an automatic flow rate adjustment device 8 provided at the bottom of the gas movement tank 2 is controlled by signals from these sensors. This controls the braking piston 5, that is, the descending speed of the object 3.

Note that various types of sensors such as a phototube, a laser sensor, and a limit switch can be used as the sensor.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a device to which the brake control system is applied, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram.

The object 3 is, for example, a kind of capsule containing test equipment such as a small alloy manufacturing device, and includes a brake piston 5.
At the same time, the gas a below the braking piston 5 is compressed and descends within the gas movement tank 2, but at this time, the pressure of the gas a increases as the object 3 descends;
The position of the object 3 is detected by the position detection sensor 6, and the pressure change is detected by the pressure sensor 7, and the automatic flow rate adjustment device 8 is activated to control the flow rate of the gas to be discharged, so that the object 3 makes a soft landing. .

The braking control system for each of the sensors 6 and 7 and the automatic flow control device 8 is as shown in the block diagram of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the mounting structure of the vacuum barrier 4 provided at the lower end of the vacuum chamber 1. Retention part 1 provided at the lower end of vacuum chamber 1 by
1 to maintain airtightness. When the inside of the vacuum chamber 1 is in a vacuum state, the pressure of the outside air causes this vacuum barrier 4 to
will be installed by expanding inward into a spherical shape. Further, when the degree of vacuum in the vacuum chamber 1 is high, the vacuum barrier 4 reliably comes into close contact with the end of the vacuum chamber 1 and seals it.

For example, if the inner diameter of the vacuum chamber 1 is 200 cm,
When the vacuum barrier 4 made of a stainless steel plate is used, the plate thickness may be 0.3a+m to 0.4 mm.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the brake piston 5 waiting to receive the object 3 at the upper part of the gas movement tank 1, and the center part of the brake piston 5 is hollowed out and placed inside. A cushioning material 15 is provided to provide a cushioning effect when the falling object 3 is received. A fixing device 16 for fixing the falling object 3 is provided at the bottom thereof.

Furthermore, a large number of gas ejection holes 1 are provided around the braking piston 5.
7 is provided, and high pressure gas g is ejected from a high pressure gas cylinder 18 into the gap between the gas movement tank 2 and the braking piston 5 to provide a gas bearing effect.

A braking piston 5 that descends due to the inertia of the falling object 3
is extremely high-speed, and may cause seizure if its circumferential surface comes into contact with the inner wall surface of the brake tank 2. However, as mentioned above, by ejecting high-pressure gas g from around the brake piston 5, This drawback can be prevented.

As mentioned above, the vacuum barrier 4 is provided in the vacuum chamber 1, and the falling object 3 breaks this vacuum barrier 4 and enters the gas motion chamber 2, and a cushion is created in the gas motion chamber 2 by the compression effect of the gas. Therefore, the object 3 that has fallen at high speed can be brought to a soft landing, and the equipment housed inside the object 3 can be prevented from being damaged.

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment, in which a guide mechanism 20 (lubricating magnetic guide, etc.) for guiding a falling object 3 is provided inside a braking tank 2, and a falling object 3 falling at high speed is provided. It is possible to precisely guide the object as it falls and provide a gas cushion. In the case of this device, the brake piston 5 does not need to have a gas bearing mechanism as shown in FIG.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The present invention arranges a vacuum chamber and a gas movement tank in series, and provides a vacuum barrier that can be broken by a falling object at the bottom of the vacuum tank, and cooks and yons effects caused by the compression of gas in the gas movement tank. Since the structure is configured to apply braking to a falling object by utilizing the following effects, the following effects can be achieved.

(1) Since it is possible to apply a braking effect to an object falling at high speed in a vacuum chamber with a simple device, it is possible to easily conduct various experiments involving weightlessness even on the ground, and to destroy this object. Even if the object is recovered without any damage, or even if the object is slightly destroyed, it is possible to prevent the internal equipment from being destroyed.

(2) Since the gas movement tank is provided below the vacuum chamber, a kind of cylinder and piston action can be performed between the falling object and this gas movement tank, so even objects falling at high speed can be It is possible to brake within a short distance.

(3) By controlling the amount of gas in the gas movement tank depending on the falling position of the object and the pressure of the gas inside, it is possible to apply appropriate braking to the object.

(4) Since the vacuum chamber is provided with a vacuum barrier that can be broken by a falling object, it is possible to perform a fall in vacuum and safely dampen it with a cushion created by the compressive action of gas by the gas movement chamber.

Moreover, the braking means using this gas control tank can be manufactured at relatively low cost.

As described above, the present invention can apply braking to an object falling at high speed in a relatively short distance and cause it to land softly.
Single-seater 1v1sul can be suitably used for collecting fallen waste during underground storage.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a method of braking a falling object according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the main parts of the air moving device, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the control system of the air moving device. , Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the vacuum barrier part installed in the vacuum chamber,
FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing an example of a brake piston, and FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a braking method according to a second embodiment. 1... Vacuum tank, 2... Braking tank, 3... Falling object,
4... Vacuum barrier, 5... Braking piston, 6...
・Position detection sensor, 7... Pressure sensor, 8... Automatic flow rate adjustment device, 9... 0 ring, 10... Fastener,
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11... Engagement part, 15... Cushioning material, 16... Fixing device, 17... High pressure gas outlet, 18... High pressure gas cylinder (compressed gas). Agent Patent Attorney Nobuo Ogawa −

Claims (1)

[Claims] A falling object characterized by comprising a vacuum chamber provided below with a vacuum barrier that can be broken by a falling object, and a gas tank provided below the vacuum chamber, and the falling object is braked by providing a gas cushion effect in the gas tank. How to brake an object.