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Space Robot Performance During Tangent Capture of an Uncontrolled Target Satellite

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Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of the capture of an uncontrolled target satellite by a manipulator mounted on a chaser spacecraft. We compare our novel technique, called tangent capture, with two other well-known approaches: free-floating and forced synchronous motion. In the proposed approach, the chaser has only initial linear velocity. The analysis takes the form of a numerical simulation performed on a three-dimensional system. Performance is evaluated using three parameters: (i) control torques in the manipulator’s joints; (ii) time to eventual collision between system components; and (iii) reaction torque and force in the gripper. The evaluation demonstrates that the tangent capture scenario improves the values of all analyzed parameters.

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Notes

  1. The project, titled “Mobility of a nonholonomic space robot constrained by large movable obstacles” was financed by the Polish National Science Center under research grant 2015/17/B/ST7/03995.

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Acknowledgements

Karol Seweryn thanks Prof. Krzysztof Tchoń from Wroclaw University of Technology for their fruitful discussions about space robots and nonholonomic systems.

Funding

This research was funded by CBK PAN.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Space Research Centre of the Polish Academy of Sciences (CBK PAN), 18a Bartycka str., 00-716, Warsaw, Poland

    Karol Seweryn, Fatina L. Basmadji & Tomasz Rybus

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  1. Karol Seweryn
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  2. Fatina L. Basmadji
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  3. Tomasz Rybus
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Correspondence to Karol Seweryn.

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Seweryn, K., Basmadji, F.L. & Rybus, T. Space Robot Performance During Tangent Capture of an Uncontrolled Target Satellite. J Astronaut Sci 69, 1017–1047 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40295-022-00330-2

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