US 11,673,694 B2
Method of releasing artificial satellites in earth's orbit
Luca Rossettini, Fino Mornasco (IT); Lorenzo Ferrario, Fino Mornasco (IT); Marco Bevilacqua, Fino Mornasco (IT); and Lorenzo Vallini, Fino Mornasco (IT)
Assigned to D-ORBIT S.P.A., Fino Mornasco (IT)
Appl. No. 16/768,394
Filed by D-ORBIT S.P.A., Fino Mornasco (IT)
PCT Filed Nov. 29, 2018, PCT No. PCT/IB2018/059448
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date May 29, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/106591, PCT Pub. Date Jun. 6, 2019.
Claims priority of application No. 102017000138579 (IT), filed on Dec. 1, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0299004 A1, Sep. 24, 2020
Int. Cl. B64G 1/00 (2006.01); B64G 1/10 (2006.01); B64G 1/64 (2006.01)
CPC B64G 1/007 (2013.01) [B64G 1/10 (2013.01); B64G 1/641 (2013.01); B64G 1/645 (2013.01); B64G 2001/643 (2013.01)] 11 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of releasing artificial satellites into Earth's orbit, comprising the steps of:
providing an orbital transport spacecraft able to move at orbital height and comprising a cargo area;
providing a plurality of release systems housed in said cargo area, wherein each release system comprises a POD (Picosatellite Orbital Deployer);
housing a plurality of satellites inside said PODs, wherein said PODs are configured for housing, transporting and releasing said plurality of satellites;
housing said orbital transport spacecraft in a space launcher configured to reach an orbital height;
releasing said orbital transport spacecraft at orbital height, when said space launcher reaches orbital height, by imparting a separation thrust to said orbital transport spacecraft;
releasing satellites in sequence from the cargo area through said PODs;
wherein the release of each satellite from the cargo area occurs in a respective predetermined direction and upon the orbital transport spacecraft has reached a respective predetermined position; and
wherein each two satellites released successively of the plurality of satellites are released in substantially mutually opposite directions, wherein a first satellite of the two satellites is released in a direction contrary to an orbital direction of advance of the orbital transport spacecraft and the second satellite of the two satellites is released in a direction matching the orbital direction of advance of the orbital transport spacecraft.