SPACE VEHICLE CORRECTION ENGINE TEST METHOD Russian patent published in 2014 - IPC B64G1/24 B64G1/26 

FIELD: instrumentation.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to control of movement of space vehicle (SV). According to the proposed method, thrusts of correction engines (CE) (control accelerations) are determined as per total changes in a period of SV revolution from correction to correction. The latter are performed with one and the same CE and a thrust level of those CE is estimated. For reliable understanding of thrusts of a pair of mutually opposite located CE, series control activations of the same pair are performed from time to time with equal pulses. Discrepancy as to total pulse of thrust is entered in equal parts with an opposite sign to the implemented pulses. As a result, reliable thrust levels of CE in operation are obtained.

EFFECT: reduction of costs and improvement of CE thrust determination accuracy as per the data of trajectory measurements, as well as improvement of SV orbit correction accuracy.