A Systematic Methodology for Modeling and Attitude Control of Multibody Space Telescopes

This article derives a symbolic multibody rigid nonlinear model for a space telescope using Stoneking's implementation of Kane's method. This symbolic nonlinear model is linearized using MATLAB symbolic functions diff and inv because the analytic linearization is intractable for manual derivation. The linearized system model is then used to design the controllers using both linear quadratic regulator (LQR) and robust pole assignment methods. The closed-loop systems for the two designs are simulated using both the rigid model as well as a second model containing flexible modes. The performances of the two designs are compared based on the simulation testing results. Our conclusion is that the robust pole assignment design offers better performance than that of the LQR system in terms of actuator usage and pointing accuracy. However, the LQR approach remains an effective first design step that can inform the selection of real eigenvalues for robust pole assignment. The proposed method may be used for the modeling and controller designs for various multibody systems.