Pose and Shape Reconstruction of a Noncooperative Spacecraft Using Camera and Range Measurements

Recent interest in on-orbit proximity operations has pushed towards the development of autonomous GNC strategies. In this sense, optical navigation enables a wide variety of possibilities as it can provide information not only about the kinematic state but also about the shape of the observed object...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Renato Volpe, Marco Sabatini, Giovanni B. Palmerini
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2017-01-01
Series:International Journal of Aerospace Engineering
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/4535316
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Recent interest in on-orbit proximity operations has pushed towards the development of autonomous GNC strategies. In this sense, optical navigation enables a wide variety of possibilities as it can provide information not only about the kinematic state but also about the shape of the observed object. Various mission architectures have been either tested in space or studied on Earth. The present study deals with on-orbit relative pose and shape estimation with the use of a monocular camera and a distance sensor. The goal is to develop a filter which estimates an observed satellite’s relative position, velocity, attitude, and angular velocity, along with its shape, with the measurements obtained by a camera and a distance sensor mounted on board a chaser which is on a relative trajectory around the target. The filter’s efficiency is proved with a simulation on a virtual target object. The results of the simulation, even though relevant to a simplified scenario, show that the estimation process is successful and can be considered a promising strategy for a correct and safe docking maneuver.
ISSN:1687-5966
1687-5974