Browse Topic: Spacecraft guidance
While real-time positioning computed by standard GPS service is adequate for some onboard applications, inherent position discontinuities are not acceptable for high-precision instrument applications, such as view-period prediction and maneuver planning, both of which are computations that require a continuous prediction of the spacecraft state. Real-time positioning also requires simultaneous measurements from four GPS satellites, a mission-limiting factor that must be considered
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Simulation study is an integral part of the validation of navigation algorithms for spacecraft. While it is possible to come up with an estimate of a navigation algorithm’s performance with a low-fidelity system model, the mathematical analysis is intractable for higher-fidelity models that include fuel slosh, flexible booms, sensor saturation, etc. Thus simulation study is a vital step in validating navigation algorithms before an actual satellite is launched
G-View is a 3D visualization tool for supporting spacecraft guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) simulations relevant to small-body exploration and sampling (see figure). The tool is developed in MATLAB using Virtual Reality Toolbox and provides users with the ability to visualize the behavior of their simulations, regardless of which programming language (or machine) is used to generate simulation results. The only requirement is that multi-body simulation data is generated and placed in the proper format before applying GView
A spacecraft guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) system is needed to enable a spacecraft to descend to a surface, take a sample using a touch-and-go (TAG) sampling approach, and then safely ascend. At the time of this reporting, a flyable GN&C system that can accomplish these goals is beyond state of the art. This article describes AutoGNC, which is a GN&C system capable of addressing these goals, which has recently been developed and demonstrated to a maturity TRL-5-plus
GoView is a video-game-like software engine, written in the C and C++ computing languages, that enables real-time, three-dimensional (3D)-appearing visual representation of spacecraft and trajectories (1) from any perspective; (2) at any spatial scale from spacecraft to Solar-system dimensions; (3) in user-selectable time scales; (4) in the past, present, and/or future; (5) with varying speeds; and (6) forward or backward in time. GoView constructs an interactive 3D world by use of spacecraft-mission data from pre-existing engineering software tools. GoView can also be used to produce distributable application programs for depicting NASA orbital missions on personal computers running the Windows XP, Mac OsX, and Linux operating systems
A paper describes algorithms for guidance and control (G&C) of a spacecraft maneuvering near a planet, moon, asteroid, comet, or other small astronomical body. The algorithms were developed following a model- predictive-control approach along with a convexification of the governing dynamical equations, control constraints, and trajectory and state constraints. The open-loop guidance problem is solved in advance or in real time by use of the pseudo-waypoint generation (PWG) method, which is a blend of classical waypoint and state-of-theart, real-time trajectory-generation methods. The PWG method includes satisfaction of required thruster silent times during maneuvers. Feedback control is implemented to track PWG trajectories in a manner that guarantees the resolvability of the open-loop-control problem, enabling updating of G&C in a provably robust, model-predictive manner. Thruster firing times and models of the gravitational field of the body are incorporated into discretized versions
A document discusses an architecture of a spaceborne laser communication system that provides for a simplified control subsystem that stabilizes the line of sight in a desired direction. Heretofore, a typical design for a spaceborne laser communication system has called for a high-bandwidth control loop, a steering mirror and associated optics, and a fast steering mirror actuator to stabilize the line of sight in the presence of vibrations. In the present architecture, the need for this fast steering-mirror subsystem is eliminated by mounting the laser-communication optics on a disturbance-free platform (DFP) that suppresses coupling of vibrations to the optics by ≥60 dB. Taking advantage of microgravitation, in the DFP, the optical assembly is free-flying relative to the rest of the spacecraft, and a low-spring-constant pointing control subsystem exerts small forces to regulate the position and orientation of the optics via voice coils. All steering is effected via the DFP, which can
The Black Jack (BJ) receiver is the revolutionary flight Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver developed by NASA to fill future needs for orbit-based GPS science. These range from a receiver to determine precise (1-cm radial accuracy goal for JASON-1) orbits, to missions using the GPS signals for remote sensing of the Earth's atmosphere. The BJ receiver follows the TurboRogue space receiver, which was successfully used in collaboration with engineers and scientists at JPL on five satellite missions. While the TurboRogue was initially designed as a high-accuracy ground receiver, the BJ was designed from the start as an instrument for use from orbit. The BJ contains many innovations to better suit it to this application. In order to simplify the analog electronics, it directly samples the amplified and filtered RF (radio-frequency) signal. This sampling produces two sample streams in quadrature for improved SNR (signal-to-noise ratio). The BJ semicustom Application Specific Integrated
A report discusses the design of fast stochastic observers for spacecraft pointing control. In this special context, "observers" signifies mathematical algorithms, implemented on computers aboard spacecraft, through which one processes sensory data (principally, the outputs of star trackers and gyroscopes) to estimate the states (attitudes and angular velocities) of the spacecraft. The development in the report was motivated by the presence of an attitude-dependent bias error in the star-tracker measurement associated with NASA's upcoming SIRTF (Space Infra-Red Telescope Facility) space telescope. This attitude-dependent bias term lies outside of basic linear estimation assumption, and the well-established Kalman theory is no longer optimal. The attitude-dependent bias term forces a step response through the dynamics of the onboard estimator each time the spacecraft is repositioned. If an optimal Kalman filter were used, its sluggish dynamics would create a long undesirable lingering
A report describes the ACS Design Tool - a Macintosh- and PC-based computer program for evaluating conceptual designs of a spacecraft attitude-control system (ACS) within a computation time of about 15 minutes. Services provided by the program include computation of ACS performance and sizing of ACS equipment for 3-axis gravity-gradient- and spin-stabilized spacecraft; computation of pointing jitter; computation of star-acquisition probabilities; computations of inertial quantities; radiation-shielding computations; transformation of attitude coordinate frame; conversion of units of measure; estimation of cost of an ACS at either of two different levels of complexity and accuracy; information on project definitions and standards; and data bases on celestial bodies, thrusters, ACS equipment lists, and costs for JPL missions. Developed within the Microsoft Excel software environment, this program provides easy-to- use graphical user interfaces (GUIs), including pull-down menus, scroll
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