Testing Coco project on ESA's ORBIT flat floor

The Coco team from Southampton University test their innovative satellite control system using floating air platforms on the ORBIT flat floor at ESTEC.

Their Attitude and Orbit Control Ssystem operates using only two cold gas thrusters on vectoring mechanisms (also called gimbals) to control the position and orientation of our system. Movement is achieved by firing these two thrusters and adjusting the angles of the vectoring mechanisms so that thrust is applied at specific angles. If the thrusters were fixed, eight would be required to perform the same manoeuvres.

Specifically, the team has used compliant thrust vectoring mechanisms, which are 3D-printed structures capable of deflecting in two degrees of freedom through bending, thereby eliminating the friction associated with classic thrust vectoring mechanisms.