TY - GEN
T1 - A scalable system for formation flying guidance and control
AU - Mueller, Joseph B.
AU - Thomas, Stephanie J.
PY - 2006/1/1
Y1 - 2006/1/1
N2 - In recent years, formation flying has been recognized as an enabling technology for a variety of mission concepts in both the scientific and defense arenas. For NASA missions such as MMS, SIRA. and TPF, a multiple-satellite approach is required in order to accomplish the large-scale geometries imposed by the science objectives. In addition, the paradigm shift of using a multiple-satellite cluster rather than a large, monolithic spacecraft has also been motivated by the expected benefits of increased robustness, greater flexibility, and reduced cost. However, the operational costs of monitoring and commanding a fleet of close-orbiting satellites is likely to be unreasonable unless the onboard software is sufficiently autonomous, robust, and scalable to large clusters. This paper presents the prototype of a decentralized formation flying (DFF) control system that addresses the issues of autonomy, robustness, and scalability. In particular, the system is designed to: accommodate a wide range of orbits and formation geometries; support different types of spacecraft configurations; provide for a substantial degree of autonomous operation; be scalable to large clusters, through the use of a multiple-team organization; and allow software modifications to be made safely and efficiently throughout the mission. Some of the autonomous capabilities include automatic formation initialization, planning and execution of reconfiguration maneuvers, and pre-emptive collision avoidance.
AB - In recent years, formation flying has been recognized as an enabling technology for a variety of mission concepts in both the scientific and defense arenas. For NASA missions such as MMS, SIRA. and TPF, a multiple-satellite approach is required in order to accomplish the large-scale geometries imposed by the science objectives. In addition, the paradigm shift of using a multiple-satellite cluster rather than a large, monolithic spacecraft has also been motivated by the expected benefits of increased robustness, greater flexibility, and reduced cost. However, the operational costs of monitoring and commanding a fleet of close-orbiting satellites is likely to be unreasonable unless the onboard software is sufficiently autonomous, robust, and scalable to large clusters. This paper presents the prototype of a decentralized formation flying (DFF) control system that addresses the issues of autonomy, robustness, and scalability. In particular, the system is designed to: accommodate a wide range of orbits and formation geometries; support different types of spacecraft configurations; provide for a substantial degree of autonomous operation; be scalable to large clusters, through the use of a multiple-team organization; and allow software modifications to be made safely and efficiently throughout the mission. Some of the autonomous capabilities include automatic formation initialization, planning and execution of reconfiguration maneuvers, and pre-emptive collision avoidance.
KW - Autonomous
KW - Control
KW - Formation flying
KW - Guidance
KW - Scalable
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=33646552040&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=33646552040&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:33646552040
SN - 9290929170
SN - 9789290929178
T3 - European Space Agency, (Special Publication) ESA SP
SP - 699
EP - 708
BT - Proceedings of the 6th International ESA Conference on Guidance, Navigation and Control Systems
T2 - 6th International ESA Conference on Guidance, Navigation and Control Systems
Y2 - 17 October 2005 through 20 October 2005
ER -