Design considerations for a thruster gimbal drive actuator

This paper reports operating characteristics, design considerations, and test results for an electromechanical servoactuator used to position the thruster mount rings, and subsequently the ion engine, on the New Millennium Program Deep Space Flight No. 1. Two servoactuators are used to position and hold the Gimbal Drive Assembly. The actuators maintain the position of the Gimbal Drive Assembly during launch, and are used to position the Assembly during operation. Fig.