An Experimental Study of the Control of Space Robot Teams Assembling Large Flexible Space Structures

Future very large space structures, such as solar power stations and space telescopes, will need to be assembled in orbit by teams of cooperating space robots. Controlling these space robots is difficult due to the dynamic interactions forces between the robots and the large and very flexible structures. Sensing and actuation are also limited in space. A number of control algorithms have been proposed that address these problems. However, the experimental verification of these algorithms has largely yet to be studied. This paper briefly summarizes a set of algorithms being developed at MIT for the control of a free-flying multi-robot team assembling a highly flexible space structure. An MIT experimental testbed designed to evaluate these algorithms is described. Then the experimental performance of one of the flexible control algorithms is presented.