Spacecraft software automatic testing plays an essential role in spacecraft testing field for a decade. However, less attention has been paid on it based on workflow methodology. In this paper we introduce workflow technology into testing for improving the automation of spacecraft software testing. Firstly we present a spacecraft testing process definition language STPDL. Then workflow patterns...

This paper considers the problem of reorienting a constellation of spacecraft such that the fuel distributed across the constellation is both conserved and expended uniformly. The spacecraft constellation is controlled to reorient while maintaining the relative positions of the spacecraft such that the constellation is held in formation throughout the maneuver. The basic idea is to pick a point...

This paper addresses the distributed attitude synchronization problem of multiple spacecraft with unknown inertia matrices. Two distributed adaptive controllers are proposed for the cases with and without a virtual leader to which a time-varying reference attitude is assigned. The first controller achieves attitude synchronization for a group of spacecraft with a leaderless communication topolo...

We propose the use of a model helicopter to emulate the landing dynamics of a spacecraft. Our controller accepts thruster inputs (like those on a spacecraft) and converts them into appropriate helicopter stick controls such that the resulting trajectory of the helicopter is close to the trajectory that would have been achieved by simply providing the same thruster inputs to a spacecraft. The ap...

We present the enabling concept and technology for a dual spacecraft formation-flying optical interferometer, to be launched into a deep space orbit as Space Technology 3. The combiner spacecraft makes use of a nested cat’s eye delay line configuration that minimizes wavefront distortion and stores 20 m of optical pathlength in a package of ∼ 1.5 m length. A parabolic trajectory for the seconda...

An Adaptive Control Approach to Satellite Formation Flying With Relative Distance Constraints Jonathan Lawton Randal W. Beard Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Brigham Young University Fred Y. Hadaegh Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology Abstract In this paper we present a spacecraft control for rigid eet rotations. This is done by creating a eet template wh...

The stability of spacecraft attitude is studied with considering sinusoidal disturbance. A passive attitude controller without angular velocity measurement for spacecraft described by quaternion is designed. The passive controller has no information related to system parameters. So it has robustness to model error and uncertainty of model parameters. The stability of spacecraft attitude control...

This article contains a description of main ideas for the attitude reorientation of spacecraft (small dual-spin spacecraft, nanosatellites) using properties of its chaotic attitude motion under the action of internal perturbations. The considering method based on intentional initiations of chaotic modes of the attitude motion with big amplitudes of the nutation oscillations, and also on the red...

A spacecraft simulation environment was developed for testing distributed spacecraft flight software (FSW) designed for autonomous coordinated control of a spacecraft cluster. The Cluster Flight Application (CFA) FSW was developed by Emergent Space Technologies in support of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) System F6 Program. The CFA provides cluster flight guidance, naviga...