A comprehensive dynamic model and configuration control of a free-floating soft manipulator-spacecraft system

Abstract

Space robots are inseparable components of many space missions. However, capabilities of space robots with rigid manipulators are restricted in confronting with unknown and confined environments and situations require high safety. To overcome these defects, the potential of bio-inspired soft robots for space applications has recently been addressed in the literature. Dynamic modeling and control of soft manipulators are challenging due to their infinite degrees of freedom. In this paper, a general comprehensive three-dimensional dynamic modeling framework is developed for a floating soft manipulator-spacecraft system employing the Euler-Lagrange method. This framework derives the coupled equations of motion adapting the generalized Jacobian approach. Consequently, the opportunity of exploiting model-based control methods will be provided. In addition, the proposed model avoids numerical singularities once the bending angles are near zero. Furthermore, the generalized Jacobian matrix is defined for any arbitrary point of the soft manipulator essential for the contact dynamics. Eventually, to verify the proposed dynamic modeling procedure, the dynamic response of a floating soft manipulator-spacecraft system released from an initial configuration is investigated. Then, a sliding mode controller is designed for the floating soft manipulator to track the desired shape and compared to the proportional-derivative control scheme. The obtained results follow the physical principles and fulfill the control objective.