Space craft navigation system

Claim 1

A CRAFT GUIDANCE SYSTEM COMPRISING IN COMBINATION A CRAFT-ORIENTED SENSOR PACKAGE HAVING SINGLE-AXIS GYROSCOPIC FIRST MEANS DIRECTLY MOUNTED TO SAID CRAFT FOR MONITORING ANGULAR CHANGES IN CRAFT POSITION WITH RESPECT TO A PREDETERMINED INERTIAL REFERENCE FRAME, SAID GYROSCOPIC FIRST MEANS HAVING A PREDETERMINED ORIENTATION WITH RESPECT TO SAID REFERENCE FRAME WHEN SAID ANGULAR CHANGES ARE ABSENT, ANGLE PICK-OFF FIRST MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID GYROSCOPIC FIRST MEANS FOR PROVIDING A FIRST OUTPUT SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO SAID ANGULAR CHANGES, AND TORQUING FIRST MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID GRYROSCOPIC MEANS AND RESPONSIVE TO SAID FIRST OUTPUT SIGNAL TO REORIENT SAID GYROSCOPIC FIRST MEANS TO SAID PREDETERMINED ORIENTATION, A GYROSCOPICALLY STABILIZED OPTICAL TRACKER FOR DETERMINING THE DIRECTION OF A PRESELECTED CELESTIAL BODY WITH RESPECT TO SAID CRAFT, SAID OPTICAL TRACKER HAVING TELESCOPE MEANS FOR OBSERVING SAID PRESELECTED CELESTIAL BODY, LIGHT RESPONSIVE SIGNAL GENERATING MEANS FOR PROVIDING A SECOND OUTPUT SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO THE POSITION OF SAID OBSERVED BODY WITH RESPECT TO THE OPTICAL VIEWING CENTER OF SAID TELESCOPE MEANS, SAID SECOND SIGNAL BEING UTILIZED TO SUPPLEMENT THE NAVIGATIONAL INFORMATION OF SAID SYSTEM, MULTIPLE-AXIS TRACKER MOUNTING MEANS AFFIXED TO SAID CRAFT AT A LOCATION REMOTE FROM SAID SENSOR PACKAGE AND ADAPTED TO CARRY SAID TELESCOPE MEANS FOR ROTATION ABOUT EACH OF THE MULTIPLE AXES OF SAID MOUNTING MEANS, SAID AXES BEING ALIGNED IN A PRESELECTED RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AXES OF SAID REFERENCE FRAME TO PROVIDE A PREDETERMINED CORRELATION BETWEEN THE MOVEMENT OF SAID TELESCOPE MEANS AND SAID SENSOR PACKAGE, RESPECTIVELY, ANGLE PICK-OFF SECOND MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID MOUNTING MEANS FOR PROVIDING A THIRD OUTPUT SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO THE INDICATED POINTING ANGLE OF THE TELESCOPE MEANS WITH RESPECT TO THE CRAFT, A GYRO STABILIZER FOR STABILIZING SAID TELESCOPE MEANS, SAID GYRO STABILIZER HAVING GYROSCOPIC SECOND MEANS, TORQUING SECOND MEANS FOR TORQUING SAID GYROSCOPIC SECOND MEANS, AND ANGLE PICK-OFF THIRD MEANS FOR PROVIDING A FOURTH OUTPUT SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO THE TORQUE INDUCED IN SAID GYROSCOPIC SECOND MEANS BY SAID TORQUING SECOND MEANS, AND SERVO MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID FOURTH OUTPUT SIGNAL FOR DRIVING SAID TELESCOPE MEANS ABOUT THE AXES OF SAID MULTIPLE-AXIS TRACKER MOUNTING MEANS, AND A COMPUTER FOR DETERMINING THE POSITION OF SAID CRAFT WITH RESPECT TO SAID INERTIAL REFERENCE FRAME, SAID COMPUTER COMPRISING MATRIX MEANS HAVING STORED THEREIN INFORMATION REPRESENTING SAID INERTIAL REFERENCE FRAME, AND INTEGRATING MEANS COUPLED TO SAID MATRIX MEANS FOR INTEGRATING SAID FIRST OUTPUT SIGNAL WITH THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN SAID MATRIX MEANS, SAID MATRIX MEANS PROVIDING A FIFTH OUTPUT SIGNAL REPRESENTING THE COMPUTED ANGLE OF SAID CRAFT WITH RESPECT TO SAID INERTIAL REFERENCE FRAME, SAID COMPUTER FURTHER COMPRISING FIRST MIXER MEANS FOR ADDING SAID THIRD OUTPUT SIGNAL WITH STAR-TABLE INFORMATION PERTAINING TO THE PRESELECTED CELESTIAL BODY BEING TRACKED TO PROVIDE A SIXTH OUPUT SIGNAL REPRESENTING THE INDICATED ANGLE OF SAID CRAFT WITH RESPECT TO SAID INERTIAL REFERENCE FRAME, AND A SECOND MIXER MEANS FOR COMPARING SAID FIFTH AND SIXTH OUTPUT SIGNALS TO PROVIDE AN ERROR SIGNAL WHENEVER THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SAID FIFTH AND SIXTH OUTPUT SIGNALS, SAID TORQUING SECOND MEANS BEING RESPONSIVE TO SAID ERROR SIGNAL TO TORQUE SAID GYROSCOPIC SECOND MEANS AND PROVIDE SAID FOURTH OUTPUT SIGNAL IN SAID ANGLE PICK-OFF THIRD MEANS, SAID SERVO MEANS IN RESPONSE TO SAID FOURTH SIGNAL DRIVING SAID TELESCOPE MEANS ABOUT THE AXES OF SAID MULTIPLE-AXIS TRACKER TO NULL SAID ERROR SIGNAL AND ALIGN THE OPTICAL VIEWING CENTER OF SAID TELESCOPE MEANS WITH SAID OBSERVED BODY.