Quasi-Periodic Relative Trajectory Generation for Formation Flying Satellites

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I N RECENT years, many proposed satellite missions have undergone a paradigm shift away from large, expensive spacecraft toward the use of smaller satellites flying in formation. Although formation flying offers a number of advantages, such as robustness of the mission to failure and potential cost savings, the benefits are partially offset by the increased complexity of the guidance, navigation, and control systems and by V-limited mission durations. The development of advantageous relative dynamics between the constituent satellites could help extend mission durations by minimizing fuel usage. In particular, periodic or quasiperiodic relative orbits would reduce the control effort necessary to maintain the formation and significantly prolong the mission’s lifetime. Attempts to identify naturally periodic relative orbits can be found throughout the current literature. Vaddi et al. [1] modified initial conditions from the Hill–Clohessy–Wiltshire (HCW) equations to enforce bounded relative motion in the presence of small eccentricity and second-order differential gravity terms. Kasdin and Kolemen [2] solved the Hamilton–Jacobi equation in terms of epicyclic orbital elements to derive bounded, periodic orbits in the presence of higher-order gravity and certain perturbations. Schaub and Alfriend [3] identified the conditions for J2-invariant relative orbits bymatching the secular drift rates of themean orbital elements of the chief and deputy satellites. In most of these analytical cases, however, the authors established precise periodic motion using approximated dynamical models. When higher fidelity dynamics and realistic orbital parameters are used, these methods break down and exhibit relative orbit drift or a high sensitivity to initial condition errors. Several numerical approaches to the problem of relative orbit periodicity have also been attempted. Sabatini et al. [4] and Izzo and Sabatini [5] used a refined genetic algorithm to optimize relative trajectories for maximum periodicity in the presence of J2 perturbations. Quasi-periodic orbits were obtained for two sets of “magic” inclinations (49.11 and 63.43 deg), at which resonance between the formation’s inand out-of-plane motion results in projected circular orbit (PCO) formations with very small orbital drift. Damaren [6] formulated an iterative shooting approach based on the Newton method to close the relative orbit and achieve “almost” periodic initial conditions. This technique requires a low-level state-feedback control loop to track a trajectory based on the HCW equations, but is robust to initial condition errors and exhibits very low drift characteristics in circular orbits. A similar approach was taken by Becerra et al. [7], who applied a nonlinear Hamiltonian model to the Newton method to obtain quasi-periodic relative initial conditions of the deputy in the presence of the J2 perturbation. A linear quadratic regulator (LQR) controller was used to track reference trajectories that were developed from sinusoidal functions of time and based on a Keplerian orbit. As yet, a method of numerically designing reference trajectories that match or closely match the natural perturbed relative motion of the deputy satellite in a generic orbit, and that are robust to initial condition errors, has not been developed. Such trajectories, with a properly designed low-authority controller, could be tracked for minimal V requirements, thus enabling formation flying missions to be significantly extended. The intent of this study is to design such trajectories by continuing the development of the methods used to search for almost-periodic orbits, begun in [6], and applying them to the J2-invariant trajectories in [3]. The resulting relative orbits will approach true periodicity by capitalizing on advantageous initial conditions, numerically designed reference trajectories, and optimal control strategies.