Null motion strategy for spacecraft large angle agile maneuvering using hybrid actuators

Abstract Control Moment Gyro (CMG) and Reaction Wheel (RW) generally serve in different spacecraft control tasks due to their unique characteristics, such as large output torque and control accuracy, respectively. The major concerns in using of CMG and RW are singularity and saturation, which could make spacecraft uncontrollable. RW as singularity escape equipment is adopted to construct hybrid actuator system named CMG & RW (CMGRW) to enhance and improve the spacecraft attitude performance as well as the CMG's. First, the attitude dynamic model of the spacecraft equipped with hybrid actuators is established and the corresponding singularity is analyzed thoroughly. Then null motion in CMGRW is further argued and proved feasible for both elliptical and hyperbolic singularities escape. A new performance index in terms of CMG and RW state is proposed, followed by a steering logic using gradient method with a feasible null motion vector to drive the hybrid actuator system to feasible states. Numerical simulations with initial conditions considering CMG singularity and RW saturation are selected to demonstrate the excellent performance of the hybrid actuators during the entire large angle agile maneuvering process, resulting in a group of feasible final states of the CMGRW that serves as great initial conditions for the next agile maneuvering.