Optimal control of rigid body motion with the help of rotors using stereographic coordinates

This paper considers the problem of optimal controlling the rotational motion of a rigid body using three independent control torques developed by three rotors attached with the principal axes of inertia of the body and rotate with the help of electric motors rigidly mounted on the body. The optimal control law is given as non-linear function of new parameterizations of the rotation group derived by using the stereographic projection of the Euler parameters. Given a cost function we seek for a stabilizing feedback control law that minimizes this cost and asymptotically stabilizes the rotational motion of the body. The stabilizing properties of the proposed controllers are proved by using the optimal Liapunov function. Numerical examples and simulation study are presented. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.