Recent advances in contact dynamics and post-capture control for combined spacecraft

Abstract

The combined spacecraft is increasingly demanded to accomplish various types of space missions. Therefore, the dynamics and control technologies of combined spacecraft are significantly important to ensure the success of future space explorations. Several kinds of combined spacecraft can be obtained by different capturing approaches, and the dynamical property of combined spaceraft varies dramatically between different categories. Therefore, the control system should be designed according to the specific combined spacecraft category and mission requirement. Moreover, the contacting behavior between the end-effector and the target has been a complex problem that may influence significantly the performance of the combined spacecraft control system. Up to now, the complete review of the combined spacecraft contact dynamics and control technologies has rarely been reported. With these motivations, this paper presents the review and prospects of the combined spacecraft contact dynamics and control technologies including the capturing strategy analysis, contact dynamics modeling, inertia parameter estimation and post-capture controller design.