System Identification and Robust Control of Deployable Space Structures using Dissipativity Properties

The goal of the proposed project is to develop the foundational theory for the control of large flexible space structures with on-the-fly adaptation to uncertain or changing dynamics through the utilization of data-driven learning and robust control theory. The flexibility of these structures makes precise maneuvers difficult and rendezvous and docking more dangerous, while the size and complexity makes precise simulation based on the design difficult. The proposed project aims to develop methods to estimate properties of these systems on-orbit with safety guarantees during the learning process. The estimation and control theory developed will be tested using increasingly accurate simulations and validated on a test platform of a flexible robotic arm. Properties of the dynamics of these systems will be estimated from the measured response to control actions. These estimates will be used to adapt the controller to better fit the system, while maintaining a guarantee of stability. The estimation and control methods will be developed from a foundation of recent publications in both fields, and then tested in simulation and on a robotic testbed. This work will improve the capability of rendezvous and proximity operations of spacecraft as the proposed control scheme will be able to adapt in less time than the current state-of-the-art control methods to constraints arising from the flexibility of large spacecraft.

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