Yusaku Fujii and Kazuhito Shimada 2006 Meas. Sci. Technol. 17 2705 doi:10.1088/0957-0233/17/10/024
Yusaku Fujii1 and Kazuhito Shimada2
Show affiliationsA practical and lightweight instrument for measuring the mass of astronauts under microgravity conditions is proposed. The principle of our 'space balance' is as follows. Connect the subject astronaut to the base with a rubber cord. Use a force transducer to measure the force acting on the subject and an optical interferometer to measure the acceleration of the subject. The subject's mass is calculated as the force divided by the acceleration, i.e. M = F/a. For the proof-of-concept ground model developed for this paper, linear motion of the mass with a negligible external force was achieved using an aerostatic linear bearing.
06.30.Bp Spatial dimensions (e.g., position, lengths, volume, angles, and displacements)
06.20.fb Standards and calibration
95.55.Br Astrometric and interferometric instruments
Issue 10 (October 2006)
Received 3 April 2006, in final form 27 July 2006
Published 31 August 2006
Yusaku Fujii and Kazuhito Shimada 2006 Meas. Sci. Technol. 17 2705
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