Satellite Formation Flying Control Using Image Processing

A problem of a formation flying control is observed. As an example a concept of a multysatellite configuration ("space commercial") is described. Space advertisement is realized by groups of specialized free flying and cable-connected satellites, and their combinations. Construction of a space commercial satellite and a set of a control system equipment is presented. Several methods for group configuration are presented: periodic impulse correction of each flying satellite position formation; method of a satellite positioning on nocoplanar orbits. Other methods include combinations of methods mentioned above. Configuration control using onboard video camera with a wide-angle image detector is presented. Characteristics of an optical system are shown. Navigation parameters of a using a received observed videoimage are estimated. A method of a relative position measurement is described. The method detects a video track of a moving ahead satellite on the matrix detector. According to the method lines of the matrix detector are positioned transversely and columns are positioned in parallel with vertical axis of the orbital coordinate system. Course of the slave satellite is proportional to the travel of the centre of the lider satellite mark on the matrix detector columns. Pitch of the slave satellite is proportional to the travel of the centre of the leader satellite mark on the matrix detector lines. A video-display processing algorithm is developed and researched. The algorithm contains procedures of a forming, localization of the leader satellite mark, deviation angle calculation. The algorithm uses structural method, detecting bright spots (image syntactic characteristics). Efficiency of the algorithm depends on the leader satellite mark brightness, size, light-striking, distance.

satellite, "space commercial", formation flying, optical navigation system, image processing

1. Lavrenov A. N., Palkin M. V., Petukhov R. A. Tekhnologiya kosmicheskoi reklamy (The Technology of Space Advertising), Reutov, JSC "MIC "NPO Mashinostroyenia", 2016, 124 p. (in Russian).

2. Dudа R., Hart P. Raspoznavanie obravov I analiz stsen (Pattern Recognition and Scene Analysis), Мoscow, MIR, 1977, 361 p. (in Russian).

3. Palkin M. V. Nekotorye aspekty formirovaniya grupp kosmicheskikh apparatov i upravleniya imi (Questions of satellite formation flying design and control), Vestnik Moskovskogo Aviatsionnogo Instituta, 2014, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 29—35 (in Russian).

4. Palkin M. V. Kontseptual’nye voprosy sozdaniya i primeneniya kosmicheskikh apparatov gruppovogo poleta (Conceptual problems of development and application of space vehicles for group flight), Science and Education, 2015, no. 08, pp. 100—115 (in Russian).

5. Evstifeev V. V., Palkin М. V. Upravlenie krenom aeroballistichexskih lelatelnih apparatov (Aeroballistic aircraft roll control), Vestnik MSTU. Priborostroyenie, 2007, no. 2(48), pp. 56—63 (in Russian).

6. Palkin М. V. Sposob prientirovania po krenu letatelnogo apparata s opticheskoi golovkoy samonavedeniya: Patent 2280590 RU/ М. V. Palkin and others (in Russian).

7. Leonov A. G., Palkin М. V., Lavrenov А. N. and others. Sposob gruppovogo orbitalnogo dvigenia iskusstvennih sputnikov, Patent № 2569236 (RU) (in Russian).

8. Voronov E. M., Karpunin A. A., Palkin M. V. Formation flying configuration design and multycriteria control, Proceedings of the XXXVIII academic conference on Cosmonautics, 2014, pp. 418 (in Russian)

9. Maessen D., Gill E. Relative State Estimation and Observability Analysis for Formation Flying Satellites, Journal of Guidance, Control, and Dynamics, 2012, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 321—326.

10. Ranganath H. S. Feature extraction technique for fast digi tal image registration, Proc. IEEE SOUTHEASTCON, 1980, pp. 225—228 (in Russian).

11. Palkin М. V., Lavrenov А. N. Examples of a system approach for a satellite formation flying control, Polyot, 2018, no. 4, pp. 51—57 (in Russian).