Numerical Simulation for Damping-Controlled Deployment of Z-Folded Inflatable Tu be

The damping-controlled deployment technology of flexible Z-folded inflatable tube is one of the key technologies of space inflatable structures. Constraint failure between couple nodes is proposed to simulate the damping-controlled deployment. And the equation of constraint failure is established. Inflation process of Z-folded tube is simulated with control volume method. Compared with uncontrolled method, it is indicated that the new method can effectively solve the disordered deployment problem of the slender Z-folded inflatable tube. By analyzing the displacement of the apical of the folded tube with different constraint forces during deployment process, the concept of effective constraint force is proposed. In the effective region of constraint force, the folded tube deploys with little retraction and fluctuation. Otherwise, The flexible folded tube would deploy disorderly or even cannot deploy. The simulation method and numerical results have a theoretical and instructive significance to the research on the space inflatable structures.