A passive damping system

A passive damping system

The dynamic behavior of the cable is a main issue for a tethered aerostat stability. Conventional systems show the following limits :

• Necessity to modify the winch for each envelope shape

• Dependency of the system on a permanent energy source

• Complexity of the system

This moving swivel system working on potential energy was specially designed for dynamic aerostation. It enables:

1 – To increase stability and wind resistance -> wider meteorological operability

2 – To decrease the stress on ground structure and gondola -> lighter structure, cheaper, more payload in altitude

3 – To compensate cable length -> possibility to bring the system on a moving vehicle (ship, SUV, armored vehicle…) thanks to the absorption of movements (waves, rough terrain, gap…)

4 – To work without any power supply -> no power consumption, no power failure

⇒ Patended process