Near-Minimum Time Optimal Control of Flexible Spacecraft during Slewing Maneuver

The rapid growth of space utilization requires extensive construction, and maintenance of space structures and satellites in orbit. &#10This will, in turn, substantiate application of robotic systems in space. In this paper, a near-minimum-time optimal control law is developed for a rigid space platform with flexible links during an orientating maneuver with large angle of rotation. The time optimal control solution for the rigid-body mode is obtained as a bang-bang function and applied to the flexible system after smoothening the control inputs to avoid stimulation of the flexible modes. This will also reflect practical limitations in exerting bang-bang actuator forces/torques, due to delays and non-zero time constants of existing actuation elements. The smoothness of the input command is obtained by reshaping its profile based on consideration of additional first-order and second-order derivative constraints. The platform is modeled as a linear undamped elastic system that yields an appropriate model for the analysis of planar rotational maneuvers. The developed control law is applied on a given satellite during a slewing maneuver. The simulation results show that the modified realistic optimal input compared to the bang-bang solution agrees well with the practical limitations and also alleviates the vibrating motion of the flexible appendage, which reveals the merits of the new control law developed here.&#10