Model Predictive Control of an Underactuated Spacecraft with Two Reaction Wheels

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/143105/1/1.G000320.pd

Geometric Mechanics Based Nonlinear Model Predictive Spacecraft Attitude Control with Reaction Wheels

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/143101/1/1.G001923.pd

Multidisciplinary Optimization Approach for Design and Operation of Constrained and Complex-shaped Space Systems.

The design of a small satellite is challenging since they are constrained by mass, volume, and power. To mitigate these constraint effects, designers adopt deployable configurations on the spacecraft that result in an interesting and difficult optimization problem. The resulting optimization problem is challenging due to the computational complexity caused by the large number of design variables and the model complexity created by the deployables. Adding to these complexities, there is a lack of integration of the design optimization systems into operational optimization, and the utility maximization of spacecraft in orbit. The developed methodology enables satellite Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO) that is extendable to on-orbit operation. Optimization of on-orbit operations is possible with MDO since the model predictive controller developed in this dissertation guarantees the achievement of the on-ground design behavior in orbit. To enable the design optimization of highly constrained and complex-shaped space systems, the spherical coordinate analysis technique, called the ``Attitude Sphere'', is extended and merged with an additional engineering tools like OpenGL. OpenGL's graphic acceleration facilitates the accurate estimation of the shadow-degraded photovoltaic cell area. This technique is applied to the design optimization of the satellite Electric Power System (EPS) and the design result shows that the amount of photovoltaic power generation can be increased more than 9%. Based on this initial methodology, the goal of this effort is extended from Single Discipline Optimization to Multidisciplinary Optimization, which includes the design and also operation of the EPS, Attitude Determination and Control System (ADCS), and communication system. The geometry optimization satisfies the conditions of the ground development phase; however, the operation optimization may not be as successful as expected in orbit due to disturbances. To address this issue, for the ADCS operations, controllers based on Model Predictive Control that are effective for constraint handling were developed and implemented. All the suggested design and operation methodologies are applied to a mission “CADRE”, which is space weather mission scheduled for operation in 2016. This application demonstrates the usefulness and capability of the methodology to enhance CADRE's capabilities, and its ability to be applied to a variety of missions.PhDAerospace EngineeringUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/120694/1/daylee_1.pd

Autonomous rendezvous and docking maneuvers with Model Predictive Control strategies

Since the beginning of space era, rendezvous and docking maneuvers have been of great importance for the success of numerous missions. The operation of meeting two or more space vehicles in orbit is a need for many missions which require the assembly or supply of orbital platforms, debris removal, or sample return for interplanetary missions. Such maneuvers can be performed automatically in a feedback way, with numerous advantages over manual control. The objective of this thesis is to present the Model Predictive Control (MPC), an advanced controller, for rendezvous and docking maneuvers between two cooperative satellites in orbit and compare its behaviors and performances with those of a classical PID controller. After the description of the operating principle of MPC and PID control strategies and the dynamics equations of the relative motion between satellites in orbit, a realistic rendezvous and docking scenario is considered. The scenario involves a 3U CubeSat performing autonomously the final approach to a target orbiting station along the V-bar direction, and includes some of the typical environmental disturbances at LEO orbits (differential drag and J2). A software developed in Matlab has been used to carry out the numerical simulations with the two kinds of controller. Once the optimal parameters of the controllers have been found and verified, a 1000-run Montecarlo simulation for both types of controller has been carried out and results have been compared in terms of quality of the trajectory inside the approach cones, respect of docking requirements, and use of delta-V.Since the beginning of space era, rendezvous and docking maneuvers have been of great importance for the success of numerous missions. The operation of meeting two or more space vehicles in orbit is a need for many missions which require the assembly or supply of orbital platforms, debris removal, or sample return for interplanetary missions. Such maneuvers can be performed automatically in a feedback way, with numerous advantages over manual control. The objective of this thesis is to present the Model Predictive Control (MPC), an advanced controller, for rendezvous and docking maneuvers between two cooperative satellites in orbit and compare its behaviors and performances with those of a classical PID controller. After the description of the operating principle of MPC and PID control strategies and the dynamics equations of the relative motion between satellites in orbit, a realistic rendezvous and docking scenario is considered. The scenario involves a 3U CubeSat performing autonomously the final approach to a target orbiting station along the V-bar direction, and includes some of the typical environmental disturbances at LEO orbits (differential drag and J2). A software developed in Matlab has been used to carry out the numerical simulations with the two kinds of controller. Once the optimal parameters of the controllers have been found and verified, a 1000-run Montecarlo simulation for both types of controller has been carried out and results have been compared in terms of quality of the trajectory inside the approach cones, respect of docking requirements, and use of delta-V

UNSCENTED GUIDANCE FOR POINT-TO-POINT REACTION WHEEL MANEUVERS

Attitude control system failures are often mission ending even when the mission payload remains operational. In this dissertation, the concept of unscented guidance is applied to reorient a reaction wheel satellite in the absence of feedback from star trackers or an inertial measurement unit (IMU). It is shown that an open-loop maneuver, properly designed using optimal control theory, can be used to achieve terminal attitude errors that are comparable with closed-loop control in the presence of uncertainty in the satellite inertia tensor. Typically, coarse closed-loop control is used to achieve < 1 degree pointing accuracy before more accurate pointing is done using fine guidance sensors to close the loop for science acquisition. It is shown that reaction wheel maneuvers designed using unscented guidance can also achieve sub-degree pointing accuracy of the spacecraft, making control hand-off to a functioning fine pointing control mode possible. The approach presented here enables large angle attitude control to be recovered so that mission operations may be continued despite IMU or star tracker failures.DoD Space, Chantilly, VA 20151Civilian, Department of the NavyApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited

Design, Development, and Testing of Near-Optimal Satellite Attitude Control Strategies

Advances in space technology and interest toward remote sensing mission have grown in the recent years, requiring the attitude control subsystems of observation satellites to increase their performances in terms of pointing accuracy and on-board implementability. Moreover, an increased interest in small satellite missions and the recent technological developments related to the CubeSats standard have drastically reduced the cost of producing and flying a satellite mission. In this context, the proposed research aims to improve the state of the art for satellite attitude control methodologies by proposing a near-optimal attitude control strategy, simulated in a high-fidelity environment. Two strategies are presented, both are based on the implementation of a direct method, the Inverse Dynamics in the Virtual Domain (IDVD), and a nonlinear programming solver, the Sequential Gradient-Restoration Algorithm (SGRA). The IDVD allows the transcription of the original optimal control problem into an equivalent nonlinear programming problem. SGRA is adopted for the quick determination of near-optimal attitude trajectories. The two optimization criteria considered are the target acquisition time and the maneuver energy associated to the actuation torques. In addition, the development and initial testing of a satellite attitude simulator testbed for on-ground experimentation of attitude, determination, and control methodologies is proposed. The Suspended Satellite Three-Axis Rotation Testbed (START) is a novel low-cost satellite three-axis attitude simulator testbed, it is located at the Aerospace Robotics Testbed Laboratory (ARTLAB). START is mainly composed by a 3D printed base, a single-board computer, a set of actuators, and an electric battery. The suspension system is based on three thin high tensile strength wires allowing a three degrees-of freedom rotation range comparable to the one of air bearing-based floating testbeds, and minimal resistive torque in all the rotations axis. This set up will enable the hardware in-the-loop experimentation of attitude guidance navigation and control strategies. Finally, a set of guidelines to select a solver for the solution of nonlinear programming problems is proposed. With this in mind, a comparison of the convergence performances of commonly used solvers for both unconstrained and constrained nonlinear programming problems is presented. The terms of comparison involve accuracy, convergence rate, and convergence speed. Because of its popularity among research teams in academia and industry, MATLAB is used as common implementation platform for the solvers

Large Deployable Reflector (LDR) system concept and technology definition study. Volume 2: Technology assessment and technology development plan

A study was conducted to define reasonable and representative LDR system concepts for the purpose of defining a technology development program aimed at providing the requisite technological capability necessary to start LDR development by the end of 1991. This volume presents thirteen technology assessments and technology development plans, as well as an overview and summary of the LDR concepts. Twenty-two proposed augmentation projects are described (selected from more than 30 candidates). The five LDR technology areas most in need of supplementary support are: cryogenic cooling; astronaut assembly of the optically precise LDR in space; active segmented primary mirror; dynamic structural control; and primary mirror contamination control. Three broad, time-phased, five-year programs were synthesized from the 22 projects, scheduled, and funding requirements estimated

Advances in Spacecraft Attitude Control

Spacecraft attitude maneuvers comply with Euler's moment equations, a set of three nonlinear, coupled differential equations. Nonlinearities complicate the mathematical treatment of the seemingly simple action of rotating, and these complications lead to a robust lineage of research. This book is meant for basic scientifically inclined readers, and commences with a chapter on the basics of spaceflight and leverages this remediation to reveal very advanced topics to new spaceflight enthusiasts. The topics learned from reading this text will prepare students and faculties to investigate interesting spaceflight problems in an era where cube satellites have made such investigations attainable by even small universities. It is the fondest hope of the editor and authors that readers enjoy this book

Development of Innovative GNC Algorithms for Aerospace Applications

The main context of the present dissertation is the SAPERE STRONG (Space Advanced Project for Excellence in Research and Enterprise – Sistemi, Tecnologie e Ricerche per l’Operatività Nazionale Globale) project, founded by Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR) with the goal to improve Italian access to Space and Space Exploration. For this purpose, extension of the launch capability of the Vega launcher is included in the project, realized with a Space-Tug which is used to deploy in the nominal orbit a payload spacecraft. This thesis has the objective to develop an advanced orbital simulator as a tool which makes the designer able to develop and test the Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) software for the Space-Tug spacecraft. The GNC software is developed in collaboration with the leader industrial company of the project, Thales Alenia Space. Thales Alenia Space (TAS) is in charge of developing the Navigation and Control Function and the main structure of flight software, while Politecnico di Torino collaborates with the development of the Guidance function and the orbital simulator. During the whole project has been planned an internship of 1500 hours inside the offices of TAS in Torino. The project includes also a visiting period of international institution. In the specific frame of this Ph. D. thesis, has been spent three months at the University of Sevilla, with the purpose of study and design of a Galileo receiver as an additional input for determination of position in advanced navigation systems, since the Galileo constellation is near to be fully operative in the next future. Details related to all the activities executed during this internship will be presented in Appendix B. The main objective of this dissertation is the development of innovative GNC algorithms, focusing mainly on the Guidance problem, for aerospace application. An extensive literature review of existing guidance law, control techniques, actuators for attitude and trajectory control, sensors and docking mechanism and techniques has been performed. The Guidance topic has been analyzed focusing on the missile-derived Proportional Navigation Guidance (PNG) algorithm, Zero-Effort-Miss/Zero-Effort-Velocity (ZEM/ZEV) algorithm and Lambert guidance. Feasibility, performance, pros and cons have been extensively studied in this work, especially in an experimental fashion, and new solutions and implementation strategies have been proposed. The literature review has been completed for Control and Navigation issues, as well. Control strategies, actuation systems and algorithm have been investigated, starting from the classical proportional/Integrative/Derivative (PID) controllers, to more recent and innovative control law, such as Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR). As for the Control function, the Navigation topic, intended as navigation filters and algorithms, has been studied in the last period of this work, while the navigation problem form the hardware side (i.e. sensors) has been deeply analyzed in the present work. In addition to the GNC investigation, the simulation topic has been studied as well, since one of the goals of this dissertation is the realization of an orbital simulator. The orbital simulator is a complete 6 degrees-of-freedom simulator, based on the relative equation of motion (Hill’s equations) for the trajectory computation and based on the classical rigid body equation, including the quaternion notation, for the computation of the attitude dynamics. The orbital environment is well defined, including all common disturbances found in Low Earth Orbits (LEO) and affecting the dynamics of an orbiting body. A complete set of sensors is implemented, including an accurate model of common measurement errors affecting the sensors included in the spacecraft configuration (Inertial Measurement Unit, Star Tracker, GPS, Radio Finder, Lidar and Camera). Actuators are carefully modeled, including a reaction wheels system and a reaction control thrusters system. Errors derived for misalignment of the wheels system and non-nominal inertia and shooting and misalignment errors for the thrusters systems are modeled as well

Technology for large space systems: A bibliography with indexes (supplement 22)

This bibliography lists 1077 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information System between July 1, 1989 and December 31, 1989. Its purpose is to provide helpful information to the researcher or manager engaged in the development of technologies related to large space systems. Subject areas include mission and program definition, design techniques, structural and thermal analysis, structural dynamics and control systems, electronics, advanced materials, assembly concepts, and propulsion