Hybrid Open/Closed-Loop Attitude Control Method for Imaging Satellites
Publication: Journal of Aerospace Engineering
Volume 34, Issue 5
Abstract
In this work, we focus on the attitude control problem of an imaging satellite required to acquire and accurately track a target area on the Earth’s surface. The proposed hybrid methodology combines an open-loop implementation of a near-optimal trajectory for the initial acquisition phase and a quaternion feedback proportional-derivative controller for the subsequent tracking phase. The fast prototyping of the near-optimal attitude trajectory is achieved by integrating a direct method, the inverse dynamics in the virtual domain, and a nonlinear programming solver, the sequential gradient-restoration algorithm. The optimization criteria taken under analysis are the target acquisition time and the maneuver energy associated to the actuation torques. To assess the effectiveness of the proposed approach, we compare its performance against two standard closed-loop attitude controllers, namely, a classical quaternion feedback proportional-derivative controller and a linear quadratic regulator. Simulation results, in a hi-fi environment, show that the proposed controller achieves better tracking accuracy and optimality than the other controllers.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Published In
Journal of Aerospace Engineering
Volume 34 • Issue 5 • September 2021
Copyright
© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Nov 13, 2020
Accepted: Mar 2, 2021
Published online: Jul 12, 2021
Published in print: Sep 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Dec 12, 2021
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