Real-time, propellant-optimized spacecraft motion planning under Clohessy-Wiltshire-Hill dynamics

This paper presents a sampling-based motion planning algorithm for real-time, propellant-optimized autonomous spacecraft trajectory generation in near-circular orbits. Specifically, this paper leverages recent algorithmic advances in the field of robot motion planning to the problem of impulsively-a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in2016 IEEE Aerospace Conference pp. 1 - 16
Main Authors Starek, Joseph A., Schmerling, Edward, Maher, Gabriel D., Barbee, Brent W., Pavone, Marco
Format Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published IEEE 01.03.2016
Subjects
Heuristic algorithms
Orbits
Planning
Propulsion
Real-time systems
Space vehicles
Trajectory
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DOI10.1109/AERO.2016.7500704

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Summary:This paper presents a sampling-based motion planning algorithm for real-time, propellant-optimized autonomous spacecraft trajectory generation in near-circular orbits. Specifically, this paper leverages recent algorithmic advances in the field of robot motion planning to the problem of impulsively-actuated, propellant-optimized rendezvous and proximity operations under the Clohessy-Wiltshire-Hill (CWH) dynamics model. The approach calls upon a modified version of the Fast Marching Tree (FMT*) algorithm to grow a set of feasible and actively-safe trajectories over a deterministic, low-dispersion set of sample points covering the free state space. Key features of the proposed algorithm include: (i) theoretical guarantees of trajectory safety and performance, (ii) real-time implementability, and (iii) generality, in the sense that a large class of constraints can be handled directly. As a result, the proposed algorithm offers the potential for widespread application, ranging from on-orbit satellite servicing to orbital debris removal and autonomous inspection missions.
DOI:10.1109/AERO.2016.7500704