Equivalent dynamic modeling and analysis of the hexagonal prism deployable truss antenna

An equivalent dynamic modeling method of the fully deployed hexagonal prism deployable truss antenna (HPDTA) based on the energy equivalence principle (EEP) is developed to better understand the dynamics of this type of antenna. First, the structural composition and deploying principle of the HPDTA are described, and the method and process of establishing the equivalent dynamic model for the HPDTA based on the EEP are introduced. Second, the structure of the HPDTA is simplified by equating it to the hexagonal equivalent beam model, and the total strain and kinetic energies of the antenna structure are obtained. Third, the energy equivalence relationship between the equivalent model and the antenna structure is established based on the principle that the total strain and kinetic energies are equal, which enables the determination of the stiffness and mass matrices of the equivalent model. Finally, the natural frequency of the equivalent model is solved, and the finite element simulation results of the antenna structure are compared and analyzed with the calculation results of the equivalent model. Results show that the natural frequencies of both models agree well, with a maximum error of 7.53%. The equivalent model demonstrates higher accuracy in analyzing the dynamics of the HPDTA structure, which verifies its correctness. This model provides a new approach for analyzing the dynamics of large space truss structures with hexagonal prism characteristics.